Like this DailyKos diary currently on the Recommend List:
“Beware…B of A Credit Card holders !”

The diarist, Persiflage ends by saying,
One thing I am sure of is that we can thank our feckless elected representatives in Congress for allowing the financial industry to screw us at will.

Amen, brother. Amen

Without trying to put words in TBCT’s mouth, I think part of what he is saying is that there is a much bigger problem than what this addresses. If Dodd jumps to try and fix these other problems, then the touting of his leadership would be much more warranted.

Until then “Right now, Dodd is introducing legislation that would prevent a crisis like this from ever taking place again” is Dodd doing his job, not leading as you proclaim.

And I’m not saying Dodd doesn’t deserve some credit. But he still hasn’t had his “show me the money” moment yet…

I will respond to this if you can point to one other time that I called out out for crapping on someone, otherwise it will be hard for to “quit” doing it.

This latest housing bubble, fed by ridiculous mortgage practices, was pretty obvious in its making. Certainly someone as experienced as Senator Dodd saw the inevitable train-wreck, yet he did nothing until its consequences were upon us. And you want to call that leadership??

In terms of Dodd actually standing up against big corporate interests, in actuality he isn’t. (If so, he would have hit one out of the park by tackling usury and the unscrupulous credit card companies.)

What Dodd is doing now is simply playing the “pressure release valve” game. It’s half-measures made to cool-down people’s anger by blowing off a little steam with a hint of justice. (Think of Eliot Spitzer and his fines against the big trading houses after the tech bubble crashed….) Sure, someone in charge is playing a useful role, but don’t confuse it with heroism.

Finally, will you quit accusing me of “crapping on somebody” every time I don’t toe the party line? It’s quite silly, and I guess the equivalent would me accusing you of “sucking up” to the CT Dem party structure at every turn.

Dodd’s plan would fix the underlying problem. Sure, I would like to see a plan that also included to the relief for the people currently suffering foreclosure due to subprime mortgages. But crapping on the one person who has proposed a fix so that this never happens again doesn’t seem particularly productive to me. Or are we only cheering for band-aids now and not cures?

And this: If Dodd wants to convince me that as Senate Banking Chair he actually cares more about the little people than big corporate interests, …. well, he’s got to find more religion! is absurd. You think the big corporate interests want to see this practice ended forever? Or would they like to see a one-time fix that leaves the structurally unequal system in place?

Only Dodd’s getting to the preventive stuff well after the accident has already happened!

And leading Senator Dodd still hasn’t done shit to take on the credit card industry and their usurious practices.

Doing the right thing isn’t about election year conversions, nor is it about press releases. If Dodd wants to convince me that as Senate Banking Chair he actually cares more about the little people than big corporate interests, …. well, he’s got to find more religion![/quote]

OK, something is seriously not right in the world. This is the second time in as many days that I agree with you TBCT…I think I may cry.

Only Dodd’s getting to the preventive stuff well after the accident has already happened!

And leading Senator Dodd still hasn’t done shit to take on the credit card industry and their usurious practices.

Doing the right thing isn’t about election year conversions, nor is it about press releases. If Dodd wants to convince me that as Senate Banking Chair he actually cares more about the little people than big corporate interests, …. well, he’s got to find more religion!

NY doesn’t allow them. I don’t know about CT. And you make a good point. Predatory lending goes well beyond mortgages. True reform would require changes in virtually all types of lending and credit.