Our friends at Americans for Financial Reform give us some helpful tips on what we can do right now to help get Elizabeth Warren nominated:

Here's what you can do to show your support for Elizabeth Warren, the ideal candidate for head of the CFPB:

• Send a letter to President Obama, letting him know you want Elizabeth Warren in that seat.
• Sign The Progressive Change Campaign Committee's petition in support of enabling Elizabeth Warren to police Wall Street.
• Sign Public Citizen's petition in support of appointing Elizabeth Warren as the watchdog Americans need.
• Sign Ilan Moscovitz's (of The Motley Fool) petition to show that you agree that America needs Elizabeth Warren's "charisma, vision, and passion to get the job done."
• Join Politico‘s online debate and voice your support for Elizabeth Warren.

And, of course, you can watch this new video and pass it on to your friends...

Today was an historic day.

We did it. Heather Booth of Americans for Financial Reform celebrates:

With his signature, President Obama ushers in a sea change after decades when the big banks were allowed to write their own rules, take advantage of consumers, and collect huge bonuses for themselves while leaving the rest of us to pay the costs of their recklessness. The financial reform legislation will empower consumers by putting an independent advocate on their side when it comes to buying homes and managing their credit. Banks and other financial institutions will no longer be allowed to gamble with our money for their profit, and risky investments will be forced out into the light of day. Families and businesses alike will benefit from increased transparency and security, and from pushing banks away from speculation and towards making sound loans.

We applaud the President and Congress for their leadership in guiding this legislation into law, a clear victory for Main Street. We look forward to ensuring that these strong reforms are implemented with all Americans in mind.

Today, we celebrate. Tomorrow, we get back to work.

Heather Booth is leading a coalition called Americans for Financial Reform. They're leading the charge to make aggressive Wall Street Reform a reality.

As the House stood poised to pass meaningful reform, Heather took to the airwaves to urge action. Listen to her appearance on the Marc Steiner Show on June 30th and to her Counterpoint/Between the Lines appearance on June 28th.

A roundup of editorials from across the country clearly demonstrate that the opponents of reform are on the wrong side. Americans for Financial Security reports:

Cleaning up Wall Street: Las Vegas Sun Editorial, May 25: “It is notable that Republicans continue to raise a fuss about the legislation… [Their] comments are also disingenuous. There is no government takeover. Nor is there some “superbureaucracy” in the works to manipulate the way financial institutions lend money. The legislation in Congress would help protect investors and taxpayers from the egregious actions of financial firms, which — as the nation learned — can be calamitous to the economy. The Republicans might remember that millions of Americans were badly burned…Republicans have misplaced their disgust. While they are upset at regulation, Americans are calling for it.”

There's hope for a good financial reform bill to emerge on Capitol Hill: New Jersey Star-Ledger Editorial, May 24: “As the Senate measure is merged with one the House passed last year, compromises will be made and certainly the final bill won’t be ideal. But the signs are good that it will contain some key fixes for our troubled financial system.”

The Springfield Republican (MA) Editorial, May 23: “Passage of the regulatory reform bill is just the beginning of the financial reform process, but it represents a victory for Americans who have suffered because of Wall Street’s excesses…passage of this bill is an important insurance policy against another catastrophic financial disaster.”

Congress correct to move while Wall Street frets: Palm Beach Post (FL) Editorial, May 23: “The bills are similar enough to ensure that the compromise bill will contain solid, beneficial reforms…Most Republicans have opposed the bills even while insisting that they don't want to coddle Wall Street. That tactic isn't working for them, and shouldn't.”

Shorter reins on Wall Street: Cape Cod Times (MA) Editorial, May 23: “In the end, the bill, though not the best it could be, is generally worthwhile…perhaps fewer of those risks will be taken with consumers' money and problems will be detected earlier. If Congress abstains from a new period of deregulation, the next crisis could indeed be comparatively small.”

Chattanooga Times Free Press (TN) Editorial, May 22: “The GOP propaganda against a "government takeover" of the banking industry aside, the bill offers many useful and desperately needed rules to insulate the general economy and innocent consumers from the risks of the banking industry's casino market trading. It would force big banks to spin off some of their lucrative trading businesses into separate subsidiaries, and it would require registry and full market transparency in most trading in derivatives and swaps.”

Wilmington News Journal (DE) Editorial, May 22: “The bill now goes to a conference committee with leaders from the U.S. House of Representatives. The House passed a much more lenient bill in December. That reverses the usual order of things. But the Senate bill is better. It will give consumers better protection and it eases the threat of another "too big to fail" financial collapse.”

Fixing the financial flaws: Los Angeles Times Editorial, May 22: “On Thursday, the Senate passed a bill that would set important new regulatory boundaries for financial companies…One of the Senate bill's biggest contributions would be the creation of a new agency designed to protect consumers of financial products. Existing regulators' prime responsibility is to monitor the safety and soundness of banks, and they've proved that they can perform that task while remaining indifferent to how banks treat their customers…The Senate measure also includes several provisions to avoid future bailouts. It calls for new rules to deter large, interconnected institutions from posing a risk to the entire financial system.”

St. Louis Post-Dispatch Editorial, May 21: “The bill is the most assertive reform of the banking and financial industry since the New Deal. It reforms banking practices. It gives government regulators broad powers to monitor systemic risk to the financial system and wind down troubled financial firms without taxpayer bailouts. It creates a Consumer Financial Protection Agency to police the credit card, auto loan and mortgage industries.”

Trying to tame the financial system: The Oregonian Editorial, May 21: “This is change that most Americans have hungered for…Banks are no longer too big to fail. Hedge funds will be out in the open. Derivatives will be traded on exchanges or markets, where they can be more clearly valued. Insurers will still be regulated by the states, but also overseen by a federal agency that will assess their operations for signs of systemic risk. And consumers will have a new advocate in the form of a federal agency that will oversee mortgages and household credit and debit instruments.”

Grim experience invites the toughest federal financial reforms: Seattle Times Editorial, May 21: “Reconciling the legislation, with an eye toward getting it to President Obama by early July, requires vigilance and care. The wailing echoing from Wall Street and the banking industry over new regulations suggests lawmakers are headed in the right direction. As a rule of thumb, where the bills differ, go with the strictest enforcement…Anyone shocked by rigorous federal oversight, ought to be equally dismayed it is so obviously needed.”

We're on the verge of real Wall Street Reform. While there's certainly more to be done, it's clear that this reform will be historic. History will prove that those who stand with Wall Street are standing on the wrong side.

Today, Americans for Financial Reform called on Congress to support a bill that will put more financial cops on the beat to crack down on white collar crooks.

The bill, entitled the “Financial Crisis of 2008 Criminal Investigation and Prosecution Act of 2009” is sponsored Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (D-OH). The bill is directed at giving the Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Securities and Exchange Commission the resources they need to fight financial crime and bring successful prosecutions. Among other things, the bill authorizes the Director of the FBI to hire 1,000 more agents and additional forensic experts.

Heather Booth of the AFR makes the case for this legislation:

In the eighteen months since fraudulent and corrupt business practices, in the mortgage area and on Wall Street, collapsed the economy – costing taxpayers millions of jobs and trillions in lost wealth and savings – it is the brashness of the impropriety and deceit that is so appalling. We must make real systems changes and hold those accountable who created the problem.

Accountable America's own Tom Matzzie also strongly supports putting more financial cops on the beat.

Recent revelations about Lehman Brothers show that accounting fraud was at the heart of the Wall Street meltdown with staggering consequences for the global economy. But where are the indictments? Where is the follow up? The FBI needs to get cracking.

Below is a letter the groups sent to Congress today:

The Honorable Marcy Kaptur
United States House of Representatives
Washington, DC 20515

March 31, 2010

Dear Representative Kaptur:

We are writing in support of H.R. 3995, the “Financial Crisis of 2008 Criminal Investigation and Prosecution Act of 2009,” authored by Representative Marcy Kaptur.

In the eighteen months since fraudulent and corrupt business practices in the mortgage area and on Wall Street collapsed the economy – costing taxpayers trillions in lost wealth and savings – it is difficult to point to any successful prosecutions of major players in this debacle. Compare this to what happened after the Savings and Loan (S&L) crisis of 20 years ago. According to Department of Justice (DOJ) statistics, no less than 1,852 S&L officials were prosecuted and 1,072 were jailed. Over 500 of these were top officers.[1]

Why the difference? In the wake of the S&L crisis, Congress pushed regulators to investigate and prosecute. Congress also provided significant new resources to this end. A series of strike forces based in 27 cities was staffed with 1,000 FBI agents and forensic experts and dozens of federal prosecutors.[2] Given the size and sophistication of the institutions now involved, even more resources will be needed to give prosecutors a fighting chance.

The “Financial Crisis of 2008 Criminal Investigation and Prosecution Act of 2009” authorizes the Director of the FBI to hire 1,000 more agents and additional forensic experts. The bill also authorizes the DOJ and the Securities and Exchange Commission to hire additional investigators and prosecutors to step up the pace of criminal and civil prosecutions.

Without these additional resources, it is highly unlikely that sufficient criminal prosecutions will be undertaken to deter the next corporate crime wave. Worse, the American people who have lost so much during this crisis will be bereft of the justice they deserve.

We urge your support of this important measure.

Sincerely,

Americans for Financial Reform