The Agenda

Dems Push Ahead on Financial Reform

White House urges them to drop bank fee.

The Goldman Sachs scandal couldn’t have come at a better time for Senate Democrats, but will they have the momentum to overcome a GOP filibuster? The Senate could vote to move the bill forward as early as Wednesday, but in all likelihood they’ll have to pick off one Republican vote in order to do so. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is meeting with Maine Republican Susan Collins on Monday. Republicans say they are mostly opposed to a fee on banks that would be used to create a fund to wind down troubled banks. Senior Obama administration officials have urged congressional Democrats to give into Republican opposition and drop the fee on the banks.