The failure of Silicon Valley Bank has exposed fresh divisions on Capitol Hill over banking reform, as US lawmakers from both parties trade blame for the lenders’ collapse and squabble over future legislation to shore up the financial system.
Progressive Democrats this week heeded a call from President Joe Biden to “strengthen the rules for banks”. Elizabeth Warren, the Massachusetts senator, and Katie Porter, a lawmaker from California, quickly introduced a bill to repeal a 2018 law that had diluted more stringent regulations ushered in after the 2008 financial crisis.
But elsewhere in the party, and across the political aisle, lawmakers have been at odds over how to respond to the fallout. Chuck Schumer, the Senate’s top Democrat, demurred from endorsing the new proposal, simply telling reporters on Wednesday: “We need strong legislation and hopefully we can get something together that’s bipartisan.”