Childers has an interesting thesis: that Trump's call for 10% limit on credit-card interest was a signal for the House and Senate to proceed with legislation (already in the queue) making it so. It's bi-partisan in both houses...
But there's more.
...For most of American history, every state enforced usury laws— hard caps on interest rooted in English common law, Biblical prohibitions, and the ancient Code of Hammurabi. Charging excessive interest wasn’t clever finance; it was a crime with criminal penalties, including prison.
That thousands-year-old law changed in the late 20th century, when the Supreme Court ruled that a national bank could charge customers anywhere in the country the interest rate permitted by the bank’s home state. In 1981, Delaware promptly saw the opening, became the only state to strip away its interest-rate limits, and the credit-card industry stampeded in. Overnight, one small state’s policy nullified the usury laws of 50 states, and ancient protections against predatory interest vanished without a single national vote....
Now, rape-and-plunder rates are "authorized" by lots of States--including Wisconsin. Banks (and credit unions and finance companies) have a lot of sway in Madison. It's easy for them to spend a crap-ton of money, as they are robbing certain people blind.
What people? Glad you asked!!
... Credit card companies protest that if they’re forced to comply with usury laws, people with poor credit will lose access to credit altogether. Others reply: that’s the point. Usury laws exist precisely to protect desperate, vulnerable people from predatory interest rates— not to guarantee banks a revenue stream at any price....
THOSE people. (Is it a co-incidence that the casinos' advertisements are directed to the same peeps?)
Now, then. Would you like to see which Wisconsin legislators are......ahhhh......extremely friendly........to the banksters?
Check out this page right here. These legislators want to "cap" rates at THIRTY-SIX PERCENT.
... Senators Jacque and Cabral-Guevara, cosponsored by Representatives Allen, Rivera-Wagner, Anderson, Goodwin, Gundrum, Knodl, Kreibich, Ortiz-Velez and Stroud....
Jacque likes to play the Morality Card. Perhaps he should re-think the "morality" of 36%. And why are obviously-Hispanic leggies on the same page with the Banksters??
Check their campaign-finance statements.
2 comments:
“That thousands-year-old law changed in the late 20th century, when the Supreme Court ruled that a national bank could charge customers anywhere in the country the interest rate permitted by the bank’s home state“
States right issue.
“Now, rape-and-plunder rates are "authorized" by lots of States--including Wisconsin”
This is capitalism in action. Don’t want to be saddled in debt? Live with your means. A conservative principle.
“Perhaps he should re-think the "morality" of 36%”
I say let the interest rates for credit cards be set by the companies. Otherwise, gummint overreach according to laissez-faire economics, a GOP staple.
Libertarians have rarely been impeded by morals. And capitalism-pure has always been regulated, often for the common good.
You might want to think about "common good" in the era of populist revolts against financial sodomy, pal.
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