Statement by AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka on the executive orders calling for rollbacks of financial regulations:
Over the course of the financial crisis, working people were kicked out of their homes by robo-signed foreclosures. Our retirement savings evaporated overnight. The dreams of those who had worked hard for years were destroyed by Wall Street gambling. And out-of-touch corporatists played a game of craps with our hard-earned savings. Retirees lost more than $2 trillion in savings.
These executive orders threaten to take us back to those dark days. Working people made clear in this election that we need to rewrite the rules of the economy to benefit all of us, not just the suits on Wall Street. As a candidate, President Trump said he was not “going to let Wall Street get away with murder.” Yet picking apart Dodd-Frank and allowing financial advisers to scam retirees encourages the ugliest Wall Street behaviors that led to the financial crisis. This is a huge gift to those who already have an outsized share of the wealth workers created with our bare hands.
Working people and retirees have paid too much already. Doing away with these regulations will allow Wall Street to get away with murder.
Contact: Carolyn Bobb (202) 637-5018