With Cloture Vote Imminent, Republicans Protect Big Banks By Refusing To Allow Votes On Amendments

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) is hoping to invoke cloture on Sen. Chris Dodd’s (D-CT) financial regulatory reform bill tonight, limiting the remaining debate to 30 hours and, in a perfect world, setting up a final vote on the bill for late this week. However, that plan has been all but derailed by Republicans objecting to various important amendments, preventing them from coming to the floor for a vote. Debate up to this point has been moving along at a (relatively) brisk pace, but with the endgame in sight, Republicans are stepping up to defend Wall Street and the financial services industry.
As I noted yesterday, Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL), on behalf of a bunch of unnamed colleagues, objected to the motion to bring Sens. Carl Levin (D-MI) and Jeff Merkley’s (D-OR) amendment institutionalizing the Volcker rule to the floor. But that was just the beginning of GOP obstructionism last night.
Shelby also objected to an amendment proposed by Sen. Kay Hagan (D-NC) that would limit the number of times payday lenders could roll over a loan to a particular borrower and an amendment from Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-ND) banning what are known as naked credit default swaps. For good measure, Shelby objected to Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) bringing up his amendment ending secret holds, which was blocked by Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) last week. Watch a compilation:


These amendments would reel in some of the riskiest practices of federally insured banks and ensure fair regulation of one of the most pernicious forms of lending. Yet, Republicans won’t even allow them to come to the floor for a vote, nevermind pass.
Levin and Merkley have said that they won’t vote for cloture without receiving a vote on their amendment, so the GOP’s refusal to allow their amendment onto the floor may very well result in Democrats scuttling their own cloture attempt. “‘It does’ jeopardize the bill,” Levin said. “I’m not inclined to vote for cloture if we can’t get a vote on this.” (To be fair, Dodd has also played a role in preventing votes on amendments, publicly sparring with Dorgan over whether his amendment would ever see a vote.)
Meanwhile, as the New York Times noted, Republicans are reprising their “government takeover” talking point, used so consistently during the health care reform debate, to deride financial reform. “Increasingly, the majority seems to be doing what they did on health care now to Main Street,” said Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN). “It looks like another Washington takeover.”