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Shays supports greater oversight and transparency in financial markets
By Christopher Shays' campaign headquarters
Sep 19, 2008 - 11:13 PM

Expressed concern in 2006 letter to Comptroller of the Currency

In a press conference at Norwalk City Hall yesterday, Congressman Christopher Shays’ challenger said Shays “was among those who bought into the Republican anti-regulation ideology” when referring to the recent crisis on Wall Street. This is just the latest in a series of recent attempts by Shays’ challenger to distort Shays’ record.

“These are the same old erroneous, partisan attacks that distract from the real issues facing our district, state and nation,” said Michael Sohn, Shays’ campaign manager. “If Jim Himes did his homework, he would know Christopher pushed for greater oversight well before this financial crisis began.”

Shays, who is a member of the House Financial Services Committee, raised concerns about increased competition among banks, securities companies and insurance companies as early as 2006. In a February 2006 letter to Comptroller of the Currency John Dugan, Shays stated:

“Increased commercial operations by financial institutions involve inherent risks to the safety and soundness of the U.S. financial system. The $100 billion Savings and Loan (S&L) bailout of the 1980’s is still memorably fresh for many of my colleagues in Congress and most certainly played into the deliberations during debate and passage of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (P.L. 106-102) in 1999. Simply put, at the very heart of these banking scandals were banks investing in real estate deals and I am concerned whether American taxpayers will once again face this type of risk.”

“This clearly was on Christopher’s radar,” Sohn continued. “While Jim Himes was holding a press conference yesterday, Christopher was holding a hearing in Washington on the current crisis and its effect on the availability of student loans.”

Shays requested the hearing on July 9, when he wrote to Chairman Barney Frank and Ranking Member Spencer Baucus expressing concern about the subprime lending crisis and its impact on the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) Program.

Shays was also among the earliest and strongest advocates in Congress for stronger regulation of the government sponsored enterprises (GSEs) that buy, hold, guarantee, package and sell mortgages. He has repeatedly noted that improved oversight and transparency of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could have avoided the need for a takeover.


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