Reply #3: hmmmmm. When was the Glass-Steagall act castrated?

[BrklynLiberal]

Oh yes....Wikipedia:

The bill that ultimately repealed the Act was introduced in the Senate by Phil Gramm (Republican of Texas) and in the House of Representatives by Jim Leach (R-Iowa) in 1999. The bills were passed by a Republican majority, basically following party lines by a 54–44 vote in the Senate<12> and by a bi-partisan 343–86 vote in the House of Representatives.<13> After passing both the Senate and House the bill was moved to a conference committee to work out the differences between the Senate and House versions. The final bill resolving the differences was passed in the Senate 90–8 (one not voting) and in the House: 362–57 (15 not voting). The legislation was signed into law by President Bill Clinton on November 12, 1999.<14>

<snip>

Events following repeal

The repeal enabled commercial lenders such as Citigroup, which was in 1999 the largest U.S. bank by assets, to underwrite and trade instruments such as mortgage-backed securities and collateralized debt obligations and establish so-called structured investment vehicles, or SIVs, that bought those securities.<15> Elizabeth Warren,<16> author and one of the five outside experts who constitute the Congressional Oversight Panel of the Troubled Asset Relief Program, has said that the repeal of this act contributed to the Global financial crisis of 2008–2009.<17>

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passed by 54-44 MAJORITY!!!???? Gee whiz, why can Democrats pass bills with those numbers?

Oh yes. they CAN, they just won't!!

Why didn't the Dems FILIBUSTER this bill at the time?