May 2, 2017

Now That He Is SEC Chair, Clayton Must Champion Main Street

May 2, 2017

Now That He Is SEC Chair, Clayton Must Champion Main Street

Statements of Public Citizen Experts

Note: Today, the U.S. Senate voted to confirm Jay Clayton to chair the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Below are statements of Public Citizen experts.

“Jay Clayton must now prove his critics wrong and become the dedicated champion of investors that the job requires and the nation deserves. Ideally, he will use his knowledge of the dark arts of Wall Street to protect Main Street. Under Clayton, the SEC must complete and enforce Wall Street Reform Act rules. It must address misconduct with severe penalties that serve as a real deterrent. And it must move ahead with robustly demanded new measures like requiring companies to disclose their political activity to their investors. Public Citizen will be vigilant in holding him accountable to these challenges and his oath of office.”

– Lisa Gilbert, vice president of legislative affairs, Public Citizen

“We applaud the 37 senators who voted to oppose this nomination. Senate confirmation to serve the American people in a critical post by this august, deliberative body must be more than a participation trophy for toddler soccer. Candidate Trump pledged to drain the swamp of special interest envoys, especially Wall Street agents who have captured the very agencies meant to police Wall Street. President Trump has instead filled it with more sludge. We congratulate senators who understand that the revolving door between Wall Street law firms and Washington must be reformed.”

– Bartlett Naylor, financial policy advocate, Public Citizen’s Congress Watch division