Friends of Traditional Banking: A Super PAC for bankers
Frustrated by their lack of political power, the nation's bankers have set up their own campaign donation fund
Frustrated by their lack of political power, the nation's bankers have set up their own campaign donation fund
You鈥檇 think banks had all the political friends they need.聽 After all, court cases have been going their way since 1811 when Master of the Rolls Sir William Grant ruled in Carr v. Carr that the term 鈥渄ebts鈥� mentioned in a will included a cash balance in a bank deposit account. Grant ruled that since the money had been paid generally into the bank and was not earmarked in a sealed bag, it had become a loan rather than a bailment, thus codifying fractionalized banking.
However in this post-Dodd-Frank world, bankers are frustrated by a lack of political power and fed up with politicians who don鈥檛 vote their interests, reports American Banker.
鈥淐ongress isn鈥檛 afraid of bankers,鈥� says Roger Beverage, the president and CEO of the Oklahoma Bankers Association. 鈥淭hey don鈥檛 think we鈥檒l do anything to kick them out of office. We are trying to change that perception.鈥�
So the Friends of Traditional Banking SuperPac is born to throw some big money at certain key races this fall.
A 鈥渟urgical鈥� strike at the industry鈥檚 enemies blares the headline.
It鈥檚 hard to know just how surgical it will be.聽 To read American Banker鈥檚 reporting sounds like this SuperPac is going to be run like a鈥ell鈥ank.
It sounds like it would be easier to get approval for a construction loan to build a spec office building in Las Vegas than talking these guys into parting with campaign money.
Sheldon Adelson doesn鈥檛 have to convince any committees to keep Newt Gingrich in the race.聽 Foster Friess doesn鈥檛 require this kind of bureaucracy to funnel money to Rick Santorum.
But while the bankers are talking big,聽 they鈥檙e just hoping to cobble together a million dollars to start with.
鈥淚t would be nice to sit on the sidelines or sit on our hands and say, 鈥極h we don鈥檛 get involved in that stuff,鈥� but that just means you get run over,鈥滵on Childears, the president and CEO of the Colorado Bankers Association told American Banker. 鈥淲e need to get more deeply involved as an industry in supporting friends and trying to replace enemies.鈥�
鈥淐learly there are Members of Congress who have absolutely no reservations about kicking traditional banks in the teeth, and we are tired of it,鈥� says Utah Bankers Association president Howard Headlee. 鈥淲e鈥檝e got to be able to defend the folks who have the courage to stand up for us as well.
Wanted:聽 politicians who will protect the interests of bankers.
Can those be hard to find?