The economic crisis we face was caused in large part by greed and reckless behavior on Wall Street and the failure of government to exercise proper oversight and regulation.  Unfortunately, the main victims of this failure are millions of working Americans who lost their jobs and their homes, while millions more saw their college and retirement savings depleted or lost.

Yet, after billions of taxpayer dollars were used to bail out our collapsing credit and financial system, very little has changed on Wall Street and throughout many financial institutions. Those institutions and individuals responsible for the financial meltdown are returning to the same kind of reckless and speculative practices that got us into the current mess. This must change.

As someone with extensive experience investigating and prosecuting business fraud and white-collar crime, I will take seriously the Senate’s oversight responsibilities, insist on transparency, and seek action against irresponsible behavior on Wall Street – and by local banks that engage in similar practices.  And I will push for tougher oversight and smarter regulation of banks and other financial institutions to help ensure that nothing like our current crisis ever happens again.