InnerSelf

March 16, 2012

Bill Moyers talks with former Senator Byron Dorgan about making sure big banks play by rules that protect consumers from financial calamity, and how those big banks continue to leverage power and influence to avoid responsibility while maximizing profits. Dorgan was a nearly-lone voice in Congress in 1999 when he predicted economic calamity following a repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act and its protective measures. But given the economic meltdown nearly 10 years later, it turned out to be one of the most prescient speeches in American political history.

“If you were to rank big mistakes in the history of this country,” Dorgan tells Moyers, “that was one of the bigger ones, because it has set back this country in a very significant way and caused so much heartbreak and heartache, and a near total collapse of the American economy. ”

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Recommended Books: Social & Political

Back to Work: Why We Need Smart Government for a Strong Economy by President Bill Clinton
President Clinton explains how we got into the current economic crisis, and offers specific recommendations on how we can put people back to work.
Click here for more info and/or to order this book on Amazon.

Confidence Men: Wall Street, Washington, and the Education of a President by Ron Suskind
This is a story that follows the journey of Barack Obama, who rose as the country fell, and offers the first full portrait of his tumultuous presidency.
Click here for more info and/or to order this book on Amazon.

The Quest: Energy, Security, and the Remaking of the Modern World by Daniel Yergin
Renowned energy authority Daniel Yergin continues the riveting story begun in his Pulitzer Prize winning book, The Prize.
Click here for more info and/or to order this book on Amazon.