Senator Dick Durbin: Banks Own Capitol Hill
on Friday, February 13, 2015
Richard Durbin Money Quotation saying banks and banksters that run them endanger our economy, but still control congress. Richard Durbin said:
“Banks – hard to believe in a time when we’re facing a banking crisis that many of the banks created – are still the most powerful lobby on Capitol Hill. And they frankly own the place” — Senator Richard Durbin
Senator Richard Durbin seems to be criticizing the outsized influence of banks and the financial industry on Capitol Hill and in the political process. Specifically, he notes that banks played a key role in triggering the economic crisis, yet still wield tremendous lobbying power as the “most powerful lobby” in Congress.
Durbin implies that banks have a disproportionate level of control and ownership over the legislative process (“they frankly own the place”), despite their role in precipitating the financial crisis.
Overall, the quote suggests Durbin views banks as effectively “owning” Congress through campaign donations and lobbying, allowing them to shape policy outcomes to their favor even in the aftermath of a crisis they helped create.