Comments on: Wall Street Suing over Bank Tax? http://wallstreetpit.com/14321-wall-street-suing-over-bank-tax Wed, 08 Feb 2012 22:13:42 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Lawrence Kramer http://wallstreetpit.com/14321-wall-street-suing-over-bank-tax#comment-96604 Lawrence Kramer Wed, 20 Jan 2010 14:41:37 +0000 http://wallstreetpit.com/?p=14321#comment-96604 The tax is clearly meant to do what a bill of attainder does. So it is shameful even if it is Constitutional. The argument based on the TARP bill is silly. Could the President take Jamie Dimon's wife and family hostage and demand that he personally repay TARP? Why not, if the TARP bill authorizes otherwise unconstitutional action? And there is no such thing as a "too-big-to-fail" category that can be recognized by the law. Not without a law that actually guarantees that the bank will not be allowed to fail. It's really quite simple": a "responsibility fee" is a form of civil damages. "We want our money back" is what people say in court, not in Congress. This is denial of trial by jury, a taking without due process. It's shameful and un-American. The tax is clearly meant to do what a bill of attainder does. So it is shameful even if it is Constitutional.

The argument based on the TARP bill is silly. Could the President take Jamie Dimon’s wife and family hostage and demand that he personally repay TARP? Why not, if the TARP bill authorizes otherwise unconstitutional action?

And there is no such thing as a “too-big-to-fail” category that can be recognized by the law. Not without a law that actually guarantees that the bank will not be allowed to fail.

It’s really quite simple”: a “responsibility fee” is a form of civil damages. “We want our money back” is what people say in court, not in Congress. This is denial of trial by jury, a taking without due process. It’s shameful and un-American.

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