Put simply, the economic challenges we face create an overwhelming imperative for action now. Setting aside the merits of taking out insurance against the possibility some forecasters see of a renewed downturn in the U.S. or financial instability in Europe, the current outlook suggests that the failure to pass bold measures would lead to serious harm to our economy, our small businesses and tens of millions of working...]]> Thu, 11 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0500 House Financial Services Committee

Chairman Frank, Ranking Member Bachus, Members of the Committee, I appreciate the opportunity to testify before you on this important topic of systemic risk and executive compensation.

Each of us involved in economic policy has an obligation to fully understand the factors that contributed to this financial crisis and to make our best effort to find the policies that minimize the likelihood of its recurrence. There is little question that one contributing factor to the excessive risk taking that was central to the crisis was the prevalence of compensation practices at financial institutions that...]]> Fri, 06 Jun 2008 00:00:00 -0500