Is Sen. Dick Durbin irresponsible, or the most irresponsible member of the entire US Senate? His own amendment to the Dodd-Frank “reform” led directly to banks like Bank of America making the decision to start charging customers $5 a month for debit cards. Durbin did this. It’s his fault, and not only will Durbin’s amendment cost bank customers more money, it’s likely to lead to job losses among the banks themselves.
Durbin’s reaction? Call for customers to leave Bank of America en masse. A bank run. Which should go just swell with an economy that’s already teetering. Yes, let’s go ahead and destroy the largest bank in the country.
“Bank of America customers, vote with your feet, get the heck out of that bank,” Durbin said on the Senate floor. “Find yourself a bank or credit union that won’t gouge you for $5 a month and still will give you a debit card that you can use every single day. What Bank of America has done is an outrage.”
Durbin said consumers are rightfully outraged about last week’s announcement.
“It is hard to believe that a bank would impose such a fee on loyal customers who simply are trying to access their own money on deposit at Bank of America,” he said. “Especially when Bank of America for years has been encouraging their customers to use debit cards as much as possible.”
I’m all for punishing those responsible for this. But “those responsible” starts with Dick Durbin, along with Chris Dodd and Barney Frank. Why is Durbin singling out Bank of American here? They’re not the only bank considering jacking up debit card fees in direct response to his amendment, they’re just the first to announce. It looks like Durbin is pulling an Alinsky play, picking, freezing and polarizing a target — in this case, to distract from his own starring role in this government-created inflation of banking fees.
Do you want to hear something crazy/frustrating in all this? Here goes. The Occupy Wall Street hipsters will need to access mom and dad’s money pretty soon to buy another round of fair-trade coffee and vegan donuts to feed their tent mates. If they ever see the debit card fee hike, they’ll blame it on eeevil bankers, whom one of their kindred spirits wants beheaded. But it’s not the bankers who jacked up the fee. It’s one of the Democrats who, in all likelihood, the hipsters think is just a terrific guy. If they have any idea at all who he is.
(h/t Hot Air)
It’s the standard modus operendi. Create a problem; blame somebody else for it; declare that only you can solve it and protect the people.
A microcosm of liberalism.
Durbin is one of the biggest asses in a collection of asses in the Senate. This is the man who compared G’tmo to Auschwitz, and supposedly sniveled while doing so. He is a monument to the poor quality of people our republic chooses for office these days. A metrosexual imbecile.
Metrosexual? Durbin? That’s a first.
Why the bafflement? He’s a sniveling preener, and therefore lacking in testosterone. To me that’s a metrosexual. Perhaps you have a different definition Roger.
Now, now. Just take your corporate medicine and shut up.
Highly unlikely that the majority of those protestors have any idea of who Dick Durbin is or what he does. Most of them probably don’t really care why they are there.
While all of you talk about whats wrong and whos to blame, the Occupy Wallstreet protesters are taking that first step in exposing it all. We want the ones who know what needs to happen and who needs to be takin out(politicly speaking of course)to come down and be an active voice. We are your foot soldiers, why can’t you see that? The masses may not be as smart as you pride yourselves here, but we know something is very wrong. Come out from behind your computers and talk to the people that will help you do something. The way we see it it, what choice do you have?
It’s the perfect gambit for Democrats. Impose a bunch of new costs and restrictions that force businesses to raise prices in order to comply, making business the boogeyman in the eyes of the dumbed down public.
Obamacare, anyone?
Why do you think they want a VAT tax so badly? Tax at every phase of production which buries the cost into the price of the goods.
Durbin put us into this mess by pushing hard for lower debit interchange rates and now he blames the banks for looking for ways to make up for their losses. What did he expect!? It has been clear to anyone paying attention that placing a cap on debit interchange will inevitably translate into higher fees for consumers elsewhere. We’ve been warning about it all along. http://blog.unibulmerchantservices.com/debit-card-fee-limit-lifted-to-24-cents-consumers-will-still-pay-for-it
Umm, is this legal?
I do not appreciate you calling the Wall Street protesters, “hipsters”. Where were you at during these protests? Where will you be as they start springing up all over the country? Writing articles? Wow, impressive. I am a 48 year old male, a veteran, and my Conservatism would most likely make you look like a Liberal. I was there as were quite a few other Conservatives and vets. Now more military personnel, both active and veterans, are joining in the protests, yet you call us hipsters? Mr Preston, please come join the protests there are some of us who would like to talk to you in person. To show you that the days of polarizing these protest as the left or the Right is OVER. It’s simply Americans. You’re either with us or against us no matter what party line you may toe.
i went to the rally…about time some of the young folks take an active interest and involvement in how things run. The cost/charges of using an ATM is now price controlled, due to gouging ….having the elected official suggest effective remedy is refreshing….use a credit union. Don’t join the protest if you think things are fine…or will get better by the same techniques which got us here. Criminal banking and wall st BS is worth giving a close review….remembering the hard work ethic and fair play…..