Obama calls for Wall Street reforms

I / Washington April 24, 2010, 16:01 IST

Making another push for reforms in the financial sector, much against the wishes of corporate world, US President Barack Obama today said the promising news coming from the auto industry does not reduce the need for making Wall Street firms accountable for their actions and protecting consumers.

Noting that General Motors has announced it has repaid its loan to taxpayers with interest five years ahead of schedule and Chrysler Financial has already fully repaid with interest its loan as well, Obama said that while this is good news, it is also a reminder that the crisis in auto industry was caused in part by problems in the financial sector.

To help prevent another crisis, the US Congress needs to enact reforms to hold the Wall Street accountable and protect consumers, he said.

"Even as we have come a long way, we still have ways to go. The auto industry is more stable today. And the economy is on a better footing. But people are still hurting," Obama said.
    
"I hear from them just about every day in letters I read and in the towns and cities that I visit. No matter what the economic statistics say, I won't be satisfied until folks who need work can find good jobs. After a recession that stole eight million jobs, this is gonna take some time.
    
"And this will require that we continue to tackle the underlying problems that caused this turmoil in the first place. In short, it's essential that we learn the lessons of this crisis - or we risk repeating it," he said.
    
The US President said the part of what led to the crisis in the auto industry - and one of the main causes of the economic downturn - were problems in the financial sector.
    
"In the absence of commonsense rules, Wall Street firms took enormous, irresponsible risks that imperilled our financial system - and hurt just about every sector of our economy. Some people simply forgot that behind every dollar traded or leveraged, there is a family looking to buy a house, pay for an education, open a business, or save for retirement," he argued.