Congressman Gregory W. Meeks Delivers Floor Statement Calling for Increased Funding for the SEC and CFTC

(WASHINGTON, DC)–Mr. Speaker, as a former prosecutor, I want to ask the following question: If a burglar breaks into your house and steals your life savings, would you turn around and ask the city to defund the police department or would you assist them in ensuring that no one’s house is ever robbed again? The answer is obvious.

In the aftermath of the largest financial crisis of our lifetimes, a crisis that not only wiped out trillions of dollars in investment and savings, but led to the exposure of serious Ponzi schemes and crimes perpetrated against the American people, it is imperative that we not handcuff those who police the marketplace.

The amount of money the SEC and the CFTC are requesting, $160 million, is less than what we spend in a day patrolling marketplaces in Baghdad and Kabul.

We all agree that government needs to tighten its belt. But indiscriminate cutting across the board is not only absurd, it’s dangerous. Reducing funding for the SEC and the CFTC is irresponsible and will lead to additional Madoffs in the future. We owe the American people more than that.