Mitch McConnell Asks Hedge Fund Managers for $$$, Declares Opposition to Finance Reform

This post originally appeared on Open Left.

Mitch McConnell declared his opposition to the financial reform bill today:

The top Republican in the Senate said Tuesday that his party couldn’t support Democratic legislation aimed at overhauling financial-sector regulation, because it “institutionalizes” future taxpayer bailouts of Wall Street firms.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) said on the floor of the Senate that the legislation would give the Federal Reserve “enhanced emergency lending authority that is far too open to abuse.”

In a story that is in no way related to McConnell’s declaration of opposition–and really, how dare you even think that!–it was revealed yesterday that McConnell recently travelled to New York City along with NRSC chair John Cornyn to meet with Wall Street hedge fund managers.  The meeting focused on the financial reform bill:

As a financial reform bill starts to take shape in Washington, two key lawmakers came to New York City last week to explain what it means for Wall Street, and how financial executives might help prevent some of its least market-friendly aspects from becoming law by electing more Republicans, FOX Business Network has learned.

About 25 Wall Street executives, many of them hedge fund managers, sat down for a private meeting Thursday afternoon with two of the most powerful Republican lawmakers in Congress: Senate minority leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, and John Cornyn, the senior senator from Texas who runs the National Republican Senatorial Committee, one of the primary fundraising arms of the Republican Party.

The stated topic of the meeting: The Financial reform bill being sponsored by Senator Chris Dodd, the Democrat and chairman of the senate banking committee.

Oh yeah–and the meeting also focused on fundraising for Republican Senate candidates:

During the meetings, both predicted that the Republicans will likely add at least six senate seats to their current total of 41, meaning they would come up just shy of control of the Senate. They predicted victories in Nevada, unseating the unpopular Senator Majority Leader Harry Reid, and said Republican Pat Toomey has a great shot at unseating Republican-turned-Democrat Arlen Specter in Pennsylvania.
They also said that they have a shot at taking control of the House by adding 40 additional seats to their current total. In New York State alone, the senators predicted a six-seat pickup.

But in order to assure those gains, and add even more, McConnell and Cornyn made it clear they need Wall Street’s help.

McConnell’s opposition to the bill is in no way related to this meeting with uber-wealthy Republican donors on Wall Street.  That McConnell brought Senator Cornyn, who runs the committee in charge of electing Republicans, is also unrelated.  That McConnell was asking for money, and that these donors are opposed to the bill is pure non-sequitor.

McConnell’s real opposition to this bill is because it doesn’t go far enough in breaking up the big Wall Street banks and preventing future bailouts.  After all, no one wants to regulate Wall Street more than Wall Street hedge fund managers.