Sen. Elizabeth Warren Interview: “In Senate, there are more tools in the toolbox than are obvious.”

[bigtree]

Last edited Thu Aug 22, 2013, 12:09 PM - Edit history (1)

from David Dayen at Salon:


____ It’s been well-documented that the 113th Congress specializes in getting nothing consequential done. While the nation’s supply of named post offices is apparently well-stocked, anything more critical has generally stalled out, with little hope to break the gridlock.

So let’s say you’re a high-profile freshman senator walking into this den of inertia, and you want to make your large following proud and advance your agenda, but you’re in no position to do that legislatively? How do you, Elizabeth Warren, find your way through this minefield, and even chalk up successes?

“It’s all about learning to use the new tools,” Warren told Salon in an interview this week. “In the Senate, there are more tools in the toolbox than are obvious.” Warren, now the senior senator from Massachusetts (Ed Markey, with a 37-year congressional career, is the junior member), has employed those more unconventional tools effectively, doing her part to both change the conversation around the financial industry inside and outside Washington, and change the sharpness of the regulatory response to financial misdeeds.

Warren sits on the Senate Banking Committee, which has marked up all of two bills so far this year (she played a role in both, passing an amendment to a national insurance licensing bill and working closely with the committee leadership on reforming the Federal Housing Administration). But she has really shone in oversight hearings, where she has gained a reputation for offering uncomfortable questions to regulatory officials about their lack of prosecuting criminal activity on Wall Street. “Too big to fail has become too big for trial,” she said at a hearing in February. “How big do the biggest banks have to get before we consider breaking them up?” she asked Treasury Secretary Jack Lew in May. And she’s used the bully pulpit outside the hearing room, too, schooling CNBC anchors so badly on the history of financial regulation that the network forced the clip to be removed from YouTube . . .


article: http://www.salon.com/2013/08/22/its_a_new_day_in_town_the_elizabeth_warren_interview/

full transcript of interview:

Thursday, Aug 22, 2013
Elizabeth Warren Q&A: The transcript
http://www.salon.com/2013/08/22/elizabeth_warren_qa_the_transcript/

[winter is coming]

1. I'd say it's pretty obvious there are a lot of tools in the Senate.

I'm glad we've got a senator like Warren, and wish that we had dozens.

[bigtree]

3. ha!

. . . .works, both ways.

[Scuba]

2. Why is she so alone?

[bigtree]

4. vote

[theaocp]

8. Doesn't do much when the rep

is beholden to their donors. www.wolf-pac.com. Get the money out of politics yesterday.

[Cal33]

11. This is, of course, the most desirable way to get honest elections. But

it's going to take a long, long time to become realized.

In the meantime, there is an easier and faster (temporary) method.
Triple the salaries of the senators and representatives, with the
strict proviso that anyone caught in any corruption practices will, if
proven guilty, have a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years
with no hope of parole. And the court will be made up of a judge
and jury like any other civil court. No members of Congress will
be allowed to take part.

Many people think that our senators and reps. are already being
paid too much. These people don't realize that tripling the salaries
of the members of Congress is peanuts compared to the amount
of money wasted through bribery and corruption (and eventually
must be paid for by the American tax-payer anyway). As far as
money is concerned, doesn't the buck ALWAYS stop with the
tax-payer?

And there are only 500 odd members of Congress. If you keep the
ratio of the money involved in mind, the increase in salary will be less
than peanuts -- especially when corruption of congressmen could
really come to a dead stop. This would be a cheap price to pay for
a really honest and efficient government, which will be really of, for
and by the people.

This is only a temporary measure. By all means, continue to work
towards keeping money out of politics altogether.

[Cal33]

6. My guess is that most of the Dem. senators are too overly cautious.

However, she does have an ally in Independent Sen. Sanders.

Never have I ever seen a majority Dem. senate so intimidated and cowed
into a paralyzed inertia by the mad antics of a half-crazed Repub. senate.
These latter see that their antics are working, so why should they stop?

Here comes Sen. Warren. She sees the situation the way it is, and she is
calling a spade a spade. She may or may not succeed. I think she will, but
it will take time.

Let's all at least back her with moral support.

[theaocp]

7. You're being kind in thinking they're cowed

I'd say they're doing the bidding of those who pay to keep them in office. www.wolf-pac.com. Get the money out of politics yesterday.

[Scuba]

10. My guess is that most Dem Senators are corrupt.

[bigtree]

5. .

[KoKo]

9. Recommend!