[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 4776]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION'S REFUSAL TO REGULATE BIG BUSINESS HAS HURT OUR 
                    ECONOMY AND THE AMERICAN PEOPLE

  (Mr. PERLMUTTER asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. PERLMUTTER. Good morning, Mr. Speaker, it is nice to see a 
Coloradan in the Chair.
  Mr. Speaker, for 7 years now the Bush administration has done the 
bidding of big corporate interests. The administration has never 
supported regulation of big business, and in fact they have eliminated 
important oversight that is necessary to protect the American consumer. 
In other instances, agencies have simply turned a blind eye. For a time 
this benefited big business, but we are now seeing how devastating the 
failure to enforce the law or regulations can be for both the American 
people and the American economy.
  Last month the Bush administration bailed out Bear Stearns out of 
fear that if the Wall Street giant filed for bankruptcy, many more 
supposed giants would follow. What the administration refuses to admit 
is that had it enforced the law and properly regulated Bear Stearns and 
the other giants for the last 7 years, they never would have been in 
this predicament in the first place.
  Mr. Speaker, the administration should be commended for finally 
recognizing the need to enforce the laws and regulations that are on 
the books. Unfortunately, it should not have taken a huge economic and 
housing crisis for them to recognize the importance of government 
oversight. That is, after all, part of their job.

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