‘Crude Oil Casino’ Driving Up Prices for American Drivers
 
WASHINGTON (April 17, 2012) – Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), who has recently pushed for full funding and authority for the cops policing Wall Street speculators, praised President Obama today for his tough proposals to crack down on the manipulation of the marketplace, especially in crude oil. Wall Street speculators have used tensions with Iran to drive up oil prices, even as supplies are plentiful and demand in the United States is down.
 
“Wall Street speculators have turned our energy commodities markets into a crude oil casino that leaves American consumers paying more and more at the gas pump. With today’s announcement President is saying to Wall Street speculators that the game is over,” said Rep. Markey, the top Democrat on the Natural Resources Committee. “We need to give the cops on the Wall Street beat the authority they need to crack down on harmful speculation, and the funding and data to be able to do their jobs well.”
 
Rep. Markey has led several efforts with his Congressional colleagues to push for more market oversight and enforcement in recent months.
 
Recently, Rep. Markey and Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) asked the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to look into commodity index funds, which are financial products that appear to be over-inflating oil prices.
 
Rep. Markey also led an effort with 100 of his House Democratic colleagues to push Republicans to fully fund the CFTC.
 
Unsurprisingly, Wall Street trade groups have sued to block rules enacted under the Dodd-Frank financial reform legislation that would restrict Wall Street speculators’ ability to manipulate the market.  

House Republicans have joined in the effort to tie the hands of the CFTC, trying to cut the agency’s budget by more than $30 million last year and moving legislation intended to delay CFTC regulations to prevent excessive speculation.
 
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