The Senate and usury

[bobquasit]

The Senate just voted down an attempt to cap credit card interest rates at 15%. Their own bill does not cap interest rates at all.

Here's a link to the actual roll call (it's in message #2). One of my Senators, Jack Reed, voted to uphold the interest rate cap; the other, Sheldon Whitehouse, did not vote.

How did your Senators vote?

Comments

[bobquasit.livejournal.com]

I wrote to both my Senators:

Senator Reed, I just wanted to thank you very much for your vote to support the 15% credit-card interest rate cap. I feel very strongly that the elimination of effective state and federal usury laws played a major role in setting up the current economic crisis, by pulling capital out of the industrial sector and transferring it to the financial services sector. Please support any future attempts to reinstate caps on interest rates, both for credit-card companies and for all other financial institutions. Thanks again!

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Senator Whitehouse, I was disappointed to see that you did not vote to support the recent attempt to establish a 15% interest rate cap.

I feel very strongly that the elimination of effective state and federal usury laws played a major role in setting up the current economic crisis, by pulling capital out of the industrial sector and transferring it to the financial services sector.

Usurious interest rates are also morally wrong and exploitative of the disadvantaged.

Please support any future attempts to reinstate caps on interest rates, both for credit-card companies and for all other financial institutions.

[goddessgrrrrl.livejournal.com]

Kennedy didn't vote (Why the f didn't he vote! What the...) and Kerry voted yea. Both of my home state of California's senators voted yea as well.

I think the notes you wrote your senators were very nice :-)