Financial Accountability and Security

For years, bankers on Wall Street operated with little oversight and even less accountability. Now, hard-working Americans on Main Street are losing their savings, their pensions, their jobs, their businesses, and even their homes. All because oversight of the financial services industry was systematically dismantled through powerful lobbying campaigns and big political contributions.

Even as it gets trillions of taxpayer dollars in bailouts, the industry that got us into this mess is lobbying as hard as ever against real reform. Nevermind that Bank of America, after taking $45 billion of our money, spent $10 million on a five-day Super Bowl party. Nevermind that AIG, after taking over $170 billion of our money, handed out $165 million in bonuses, including millions to traders who contributed to the company’s collapse.

Our representatives in Washington have to hear from us—the people who were put at risk by the big banks. Public Citizen has helped form a new coalition, Americans for Financial Reform, a diverse and powerful network of nearly 200 organizations representing millions of Americans. We are calling on Congress and the Obama administration to rebuild the economy on a safe, solid foundation that puts consumers, workers, and their families first.

Join us and make sure that the bankers on Wall Street never again have so much control over—and so little concern for—the citizens of Main Street. Sign our petition demanding transparency, oversight, and accountability in the financial industry. Read the testimony of Public Citizen president Robert Weissman before the House Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law. And watch this space for news about the campaign and how you can get involved in this historic and critical movement.