President Barack Obama pushes for Wall Street regulation
President Barack Obama calls for greater regulation of Wall Street during landmark speech
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Thursday, 22, Apr 2010 04:57
By Sarah Garrod.
US president Barack Obama has told Wall Street that heightened government regulation of the banks is needed in the wake of the global financial crisis.
Mr Obama warned financial leaders that change is necessary to prevent another economic meltdown.
The US president told an audience at the Cooper Union college in New York: "It is essential that we learn the lessons of the crisis, so we don't doom ourselves to repeat it.
"And make no mistake, that is exactly what will happen if we allow this moment to pass - an outcome that is unacceptable to me and to the American people."
His speech will mark a year since he first outlined his ideas for reform and nearly two years since the financial market meltdown.
"A free market was never meant to be a free licence to take whatever you can get, however you can get it," Mr Obama said.
The speech follows last week's decision by the US securities and exchange commission to charge Goldman Sachs with civil fraud.
One of the president's aims in today's speech will be to put pressure on Republicans to support reform legislation amid signs some GOP senators and congressmen may be willing to back the bill.