USA Today called Wall Street Reform a good start, but, noted that there is still work to be done. USA Today notes what the bill does:

The Senate bill would produce the most significant changes to the nation's banking laws since the Great Depression, making this a moment that should not go unnoticed. Among other things, the measure — which must be blended with one passed by the House in December— would require major banks to set aside more cash to cover potential losses. It would put much of the risky, secretive trade in the financial instruments called derivatives onto open markets.

It would create an agency to protect consumers against the kind of predatory lending practices at the heart of the subprime mortgage crisis. And, perhaps most important, it would set up a process for the government to swoop in and liquidate major banks that are failing, much as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. does now with regional banks.

They go on to combat the GOP's misinformation campaign:

The measure is not, as some of its critics assert, a vast overreach on the part of government. Nor does it call for future bailouts, as claimed by some Republicans. Perhaps the best evidence of this is that four GOP senators —Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe, both of Maine, Scott Brown of Massachusetts and Charles Grassley of Iowa — supported final passage. That's not a huge number, but it's four more than the number of Republicans who voted for President Obama's health care overhaul.

As they note in the editorial, there's certainly more work to be done. But, this reform is indeed historic and the fearmongering used to attack it just isn't true.

Heather Booth of Americans for Financial Reform called the passage of the Senate bill a "major step forward." We agree. Heather Booth:

Today the Senate took a major step forward on this historic Wall Street reform bill that will hold big banks accountable for costing 8 million Americans their jobs and bringing our economy to the brink of a collapse. The big Wall Street banks are fighting every step of the way to weaken and defeat this bill. Even as the big banks and their buddies in the Senate see the train is leaving the station on Wall Street reform, they are lying down on the tracks, trying to block the engine. While their appalling defense of the big banks has become a predictable pattern, it’s no more tolerable each time it happens.

The Senate bill stops banks from recklessly gambling with our money and sheds light on the behind-the-scenes deals that went on at places like Goldman Sachs.

The bill needs to be further strengthened in negotiations with the House. There are still important issues to be addressed. These changes include Senator Cantwell's language on derivatives and the Reed-Grassley language to make sure private equity managers are regulated. These measures are important to make sure that reform will function as it needs to and loopholes are completely closed. We need the strongest bill possible. We applaud our Senate champions who are fighting for reform.

There's always more work to be done. But, the passage is a major step forward.

As usual, Paul Krugman is spot on:

What’s good? Resolution authority, which was sorely lacking last year; consumer protection; derivatives traded through clearinghouses; ratings reform, thanks to Al Franken; tighter capital standards for big players, although with too much discretion to regulators.

What’s missing? Hard leverage limits; size caps; not much in the way of restoring Glass-Steagall. If you think that too big to fail is the core problem, it’s disappointing; if you think that shadow banking is the core, as I do, not too bad.

There's still work to be done, but, as Krugman wryly notes, thanks to Lloyd Blankfein, we've taken a major step forward:

I think Ed Andrews has it right: not all it should have been, but better than seemed likely not long ago, thanks to a changed climate. Wall Street in general, and Goldman in particular, provided scandals at just the right time. Thank you, Lloyd Blankfein.