Top quotes by Elizabeth Warren

If President Barack Obama had not been in the White House, we would not have the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau today. Votes: 25

Unfair servicing practices can worsen a family's already difficult economic situation, and the injury echoes from the family to the community and ultimately throughout the economy. Votes: 24

Most women file for bankruptcy in the aftermath of a serious medical problem, a job loss, or a family break up. It is hard to protect against those. Votes: 24

Banks were once places to hold money and were very careful in lending to finance families as they built a future - bought homes, bought cars, took out student loans. Votes: 19

If the big banks expect to buy influence when they give money to favored think tanks, then the public has a right to know. If the big banks don't expect to buy influence and are merely making charitable contributions, then their shareholders have a right to know. Either way, there's no excuse for keeping these payments secret. Votes: 18

Marathon Day in Boston and all of Massachusetts, it's Patriot's Day, and it's a big celebration for us. It's a day when we're kind of the whole world's city there. Votes: 16

Pundits talk about 'populist rage' as a way to trivialize the anger and fear coursing through the middle class. Votes: 15

Growing up, my mother and grandparents often talked about our family's Native American heritage. As a kid, I never thought to ask them for documentation - what kid would? Votes: 14

We all understand that we are living longer, and we are more likely to spend more years as frail, elderly people who can't work. We also recognize that the wonderful advances in medicine also come with wonderful price tags. Those are things you can't budget around. Votes: 14

The 21st Century Glass-Steagall Act will reestablish a wall between commercial and investment banking, make our financial system more stable and secure, and protect American families. Votes: 12

When billionaire car dealers or manufacturers pay for ambassadorships, at least they pay with money earned by selling something of value. Votes: 11

Credit cards are like snakes: Handle 'em long enough, and one will bite you. Votes: 10

I do not understand how it is that financial institutions could think that they could take taxpayer money and then turn around and act like it's business as usual. I don't understand how they can't see that the world has changed in a fundamental way, that it is not business as usual when you take taxpayer dollars. Votes: 9

My mother had taught me about the importance of finding a 'good provider,' so when my boyfriend proposed, I said 'yes' in a heartbeat. I was still just a kid, and I didn't know what was coming in life. Votes: 9

There are lots of families who - who make irresponsible purchases. There are also a lot of families who have debt on credit cards because they use those credit cards to pay for medical bills. Votes: 9

G.E. doesn't pay any taxes, and we are asking college kids to take on even more debt to get an education and asking seniors to get by on less. These aren't just economic questions. These are moral questions. Votes: 9

Going to college and finding a good job no longer guarantee economic safety. Votes: 6

With the right sources of funding and some smart, strategic thinking about how to force non-banks to follow the same rules as other lenders, the entire landscape of consumer lending would change. Votes: 6

Some economists estimate that for every family that goes bankrupt, there are about 15 more who are in the same amount of financial trouble and would profit from bankruptcy but just haven't filed. Votes: 5

I'm willing to throw my body in front of the bus to stop bad ideas. Votes: 5

Middle class' used to be synonymous with secure, with steady, with boring, because middle-class people were people who were pretty much safe from the time they first started work on through retirement and until their deaths. No longer. Votes: 5

I made it real clear to the business community - if your plan for innovation is to trick people, is to fool them, is not to tell them the truth about the price, then you're right: I'm going to be right in the way. Votes: 5

I loved teaching, but every day that I went to work, I carried the worry that I was hurting my kids because I wasn't at home with them. Votes: 4

Consumer banking - selling debt to middle class families - has been a gold mine. Votes: 4

I'm still very connected to my family, to the world I grew up in. I understand what it means to be afraid that you can't pay a doctor's bill. Or to have to make the choice between buying a band uniform for a seventh-grader and making the insurance payment on time. That will never leave me. It was how I lived until I was well into my adult years. Votes: 4

I pay for homeowner's insurance, I pay for car insurance, I pay for health insurance. Votes: 3

People with banking experience haven't all flocked to the biggest banks; community banks and regional banks, along with smaller trading houses and credit unions, have some very talented people. Votes: 3

I graduated law school nine months pregnant and didn't take a job. Votes: 3

The women who file for bankruptcy played by all the rules, but they are still in economic freefall. Votes: 1

People who graduate are more resilient financially, and they weather economic downturns better than people who don't graduate. And, throughout their lives, people who graduate are more likely to be economically secure, more likely to be healthy, and more likely to live longer. Face it: A college degree puts a lot in your corner. Votes: 1

Who is Antonio Weiss? He's the head of global investment banking for the financial giant Lazard. Votes: 0

I never sought nor gained personal benefit in school or job applications based on my heritage. Votes: 0

We've seen filibusters to block judicial nominations, jobs bills, political transparency, ending Big Oil subsidies - you name it, there's been a filibuster. Votes: 0

Now look, you built a factory and it turned into something terrific or a great idea, God Bless, keep a big hunk of it. But part of the underlying social contract is you take a hunk of that and paid forward for the next kid who comes along. Votes: 0

Like a lot of you, I grew up in a family on the ragged edges of the middle class. My daddy sold carpeting and ended up as a maintenance man. After he had a heart attack, my mom worked the phones at Sears so we could hang on to our house. Votes: 0

Thomas Piketty assembles the facts to prove a central point about trickle-down economics: Doesn't work. Never did. He has cold, hard data showing how the rich keep getting richer and how the playing field is rigged against working families. Votes: 0

Consumers get used to reading and understanding their credit card contracts, their mortgages, their check overdraft agreements, those are good things. That puts power back in the hands of consumers. Votes: 0

If the notion on this is we're going to elect somebody to the United States Senate so they can be the 100th least senior person in there and be polite, and somewhere in their fourth or fifth year do some bipartisan bill that nobody cares about, don't vote for me. Votes: 0

Rising student-loan debt is an economic emergency. Votes: 0

Raising the minimum wage means we have workers paying more in to support the Social Security system. Votes: 0

The core of my career is my teaching and my writing. Votes: 0

Never be so faithful to your plan that you are unwilling to consider the unexpected. Never be so faithful to your plan that you are unwilling to entertain the improbable opportunity that comes looking for you. Votes: 0

I get heartfelt thanks from all kinds of people. Today I heard from a waitress in Georgia who has lost her job and is trying to figure out how her local bank can change the terms on her credit card, and I heard from a physicist at a major research university who wants to explain a better theory of financial stress tests. Votes: 0

Writing laws based on an abstract theory, rather than reality, is a dangerous undertaking. Votes: 0

No matter how good a deal sounds, if your name goes on the bottom line, you need to understand it and be sure you'll be able to pay. You are responsible for yourself forever. Forever. Votes: 0

It worries me about what happens if people in government are looking for that next job: 'Yeah I'm working now, not as much money as I could be making, but when I leave here, that's where I'm headed.' That ultimately infects whatever it is that they're doing. Votes: 0

Bankruptcy exposes the economic vulnerability and insecurity of middle class women. Votes: 0

Citigroup has a lot of money, it spends a lot of money, and it uses that money to grow and consolidate power. And it pays off. Votes: 0

In the 1960s, a minimum wage job would keep a family of three afloat. Votes: 0

All I can say is I was a lot more discreet as a candidate than I was in real life. Can I say that? Maybe it's indiscreet to talk about discretion. Votes: 0

President Obama believes in a country where we invest in education, in roads and bridges, in science, and in the future so we can create new opportunities so the next kid can make it big and the kid afer that and the kid after that, that's what President Obama believes. Votes: 0

I have voted against only one of President Obama's nominees: Michael Froman, a Citigroup alumnus who is currently storming the halls of Congress as U.S. Trade Representative pushing trade deals that threaten to undermine financial regulation, workers' rights, and environmental protections. Votes: 0

I know what I am in Washington to do: I'm here to fight for hardworking families. Votes: 0

It doesn't make me happy to go back and talk about how great high school was. Votes: 0

We shouldn't be profiting from our students who are drowning in debt while giving a great deal to the banks. That's just wrong. Votes: 0

I learned early on what debt means, how vulnerable it makes people, what the security of owning a home means. Votes: 0

Republicans say they don't believe in government. Sure they do. They believe in government to help themselves and their powerful friends. Votes: 0

Markets work when people can evaluate the prices and risks of different products, then pick the ones that work best for them. But when the terms of the deal are hidden, competition doesn't work. And customers aren't the only ones who are hurt. Votes: 0

We should stop having a conversation about cutting Social Security a little bit or a lot. Votes: 0

President Obama believes in a level playing field. Votes: 0

You built a factory out there, good for you. But I want to be clear. You moved your goods to market on the roads that the rest of us paid for. You hired workers that the rest of us paid to educate. You were safe in your factory because of police forces and fire forces that the rest of us paid for. Votes: 0

You can put handcuffs on people who push the envelope. When they break the law, they deserve to have handcuffs. Votes: 0

America's middle class is getting hammered, and Washington is rigged to work for the big guy. Votes: 0

I think a lot of Americans are not sure which side Washington is on: the side of banks or the side of the people. Votes: 0

The Postal Service is huge - employing more than a half million people - and its history is long and complicated. Votes: 0

My brothers and I grew up on stories about our grandfather building one-room schoolhouses and about our grandparents' courtship and their early lives together in Indian Territory. Votes: 0

Other countries around the world make employees and retirees first in the priority. For example, in Mexico, the bankruptcy laws say if a company wants to go bankrupt... obligations to employees and retirees will have a first priority. That has an effect on every negotiation that takes place with every company in Mexico. Votes: 0

Too often, people get jobs based on who they know - not what they know. Votes: 0

A good education is a foundation for a better future. Votes: 0

Homeowners refinance their loans when interest rates go down. Businesses refinance their loans. Votes: 0

And that's how we build the economy of the future. An economy with more jobs and less debt, we root it in fairness. We grow it with opportunity. And we build it together. Votes: 0

Big corporations have money and power to make sure every rule breaks their way; people have voices and votes to push back. Votes: 0

I'm not running for president. Votes: 0

Some of these biggest financial institutions are out there trading in commodities. They're buying oil tankers. This is not a financial system that has calmed down and is there to serve the American people. Votes: 0

What we collectively decide about how to bail out our economy, how to pull our economy out of a ditch and what rules we put in place to make sure this problem does not happen again, will shape our country for the next 50 years. This is it. Votes: 0

Wall Street banks have the right to express their views to lawmakers and regulators through lobbying, but the law is clear: If they want to influence lawmakers, they must disclose their lobbying expenditures. Votes: 0

I will work my heart out to earn the trust of the people of Massachusetts. Votes: 0

I get heartfelt thanks from all kinds of people. Today I heard from a waitress in Georgia who has lost her job and is trying to figure out how her local bank can change the terms on her credit card, and I heard from a physicist at a major research university who wants to explain a better theory of financial stress tests." Votes: 0

The President's policy proposal, known as 'chained CPI,' would re-calculate the cost of living for Social Security beneficiaries. That new number won't keep up with inflation on things like food and health care -- the basics that we need to live. In short, 'chained CPI' is just a fancy way to say 'cut benefits for seniors, the permanently disabled, and orphans.' Votes: 0

Look around. Oil companies guzzle down the billions in profits. Billionaires pay a lower tax rate than their secretaries, and Wall Street CEOs, the same ones the direct our economy and destroyed millions of jobs still strut around Congress, no shame, demanding favors, and acting like we should thank them. Does anyone here have a problem with that? Votes: 0

I want to be blunt: We should not be fighting about equal pay for equal work, and access to birth control, in 2012. These issues were resolved years ago - until the Republicans brought them back. Votes: 0

Student loan debt is crushing young people. And so they're not doing the things we would expect them to do. They're not moving out of their parents' homes in as big a numbers, they're not saving up money for down payments, they're not buying homes or cars or starting small businesses or doing any of the things that help move this economy forward. Votes: 0

I talk to nurses and programmers, salespeople and firefighters - people who bust their tails every day. Not one of them - not one - stashes their money in the Cayman Islands to avoid paying their fair share of taxes. Votes: 0

We're Americans. We celebrate success. We just don't want the game to be rigged. Votes: 0

The banks lobbied Washington so they could write the rules that got us into this crisis. They then lobbied Washington to get the money to bail them out. And then they are lobbying Washington to write the rules so they can get us into the next crisis. It's perfect circularity. Votes: 0

College students today are drowning in debt, and it is hurting them and hurting our economy. We must find a way to help families pay for college without condemning them to a lifetime of indebtedness. Votes: 0

It is not the job of the Department of Education to maximize profits for the government at the cost of squeezing students who are struggling to get an education. Votes: 0

Me, I was waiting tables of 13 and married at 19. I graduated from public schools, and taught elementary school. Votes: 0

I don't want to overstate the gender difference. But women are more sensitized to the way that larger issues affect their pocketbooks, like pay equality or cost of living changes. Votes: 0

Adjusted for inflation, somebody going to college today to a state university, is paying about 300 percent of what her mom or dad did just 30 years ago. Votes: 0

Mitt Romney is the guy who said corporations are people. No, Governor Romney, corporations are not people. Votes: 0

No, Governor Romney, corporations are not people. People have hearts, they have kids, they get jobs, they get sick, they cry, they dance. They live, they love, and they die. And that matters. That matters because we don't run this country for corporations, we run it for people. Votes: 0

I have a daughter and I have granddaughters and I will never vote to let a group of backward-looking ideologues cut women's access to birth control. We have lived in that world, and we are not going back, not ever Votes: 0

Why is the Keystone Pipeline the very first, #1 item on the Republicans' agenda? We know that this pipeline runs terrible environmental risks and it just won't do much for the American people. So why is this bill so urgent? Money and power. Votes: 0

If there's any lesson I've learned in the last five years, it's don't be so sure about what lies ahead. There are amazing doors that could open, Votes: 0

Are you ready to fight for good jobs and and a solid level playing field? Are you ready to prove to another generation of Americans that we can build a better country and a newer world? Joe Biden is ready. Barack Obama is ready. I am ready. You're ready. Votes: 0

Americans are fighters. We're tough, resourceful and creative, and if we have the chance to fight on a level playing field, where everyone pays a fair share and everyone has a real shot, then no one - no one can stop us. Votes: 0

The trickle-down experiment that began in the Reagan years failed America's middle class. Sure, the rich are doing great. Giant corporations are doing great. Lobbyists are doing great. But we need an economy where everyone else who works hard gets a shot at doing great! Votes: 0

If you don't have a seat at the table, you're probably on the menu. Votes: 0

The people on Wall Street broke this country, and they did it one lousy mortgage at a time. It happened more than three years ago, and there has been no real accountability, and there has been no real effort to fix it. Votes: 0

Our veterans deserve the very best, and that means ensuring that America's veterans receive high-quality services and cares when they come back home. Votes: 0

The financial services industry has seemed to treat the crisis like a little rainfall - inconvenient, but no significant changes needed. The real question moving forward is how the industry will respond to Wall Street reform and growing public anger. Votes: 0

Congress must go further to protect the right to privacy, to end the NSA's dragnet surveillance of ordinary Americans, to make the intelligence community more transparent and accountable. Votes: 0

When people feel like, 'Lenders weren't fair with me; I don't have any responsibility to be fair with them.' If we go far enough down that line, much of the fabric of our economy starts to unravel. Votes: 0

Others have said it before me. If you don't have a seat at the table, you're probably on the menu. And so it is important that we have women in the United States Senate - strong women, women who are there to help advance an agenda that is important to women. Votes: 0

Regulators all meet with Goldman Sachs executives and employees day after day after day. They don't see the people who get tricked, the people who get cheated, the people who get fooled by the products that Goldman turns out. Votes: 0

For capitalism to work, we all need one another. Votes: 0

If nobody can sell mortgage-backed securities based on trillions of dollars of unpayable instruments, there's a lot less risk in the overall system. Votes: 0

I learned something important in my race against Senator Brown: voters want political leaders who are willing to break the partisan gridlock. They want fewer closed-door roadblocks and more public votes on legislation that could improve their lives. Votes: 0

People feel like the system is rigged against them, and here is the painful part, they're right. The system is rigged. Votes: 0

Even families with health insurance are quite vulnerable to a severe economic reversal if someone gets sick. Votes: 0

I had to make a choice - recede into the academic world, or wade into politics. Votes: 0

Paul Ryan looks around, sees three unemployed workers for every job opening in America, and blames the people who can't find a job. Votes: 0

If Scott Walker sees 100,000 teachers & firefighters as his enemies, maybe it's time we take a closer look at his friends. Votes: 0

Cars, toys, aspirin, meat, toasters, water - nearly every product sold has passed basic safety regulations well in advance of being marketed and sold. But consumer credit is a kind of buyer-beware, wild west. That is partly the result of history. Votes: 0

Groupthink can become a serious issue - old ideas stay around after they're useful, and new ideas too often don't get a fair hearing. Votes: 0

We need to align the incentives so that colleges have an incentive to keep down their costs... to graduate students on time with degrees in areas where they're going to be able to get jobs and going to be able to pay back those loans. Votes: 0

When I first started talking about running for office, a lot of people said to me, 'Don't let the consultants change you,' and I'd always assured them that I wouldn't allow it to happen. But like it or not, I had to change. Not because of a consultant, but because I started to understand the cost of a stupid mistake. Votes: 0

The word's out: I'm a woman, and I'm going to have trouble backing off on that. I am what I am. I'll go out and talk to people about what's happening to their families, and when I do that, I'm a mother. I'm a grandmother. Votes: 0

Bankruptcy is about financial death and financial rebirth. Bankruptcy is the great American story rewritten. We're a nation of debtors. Votes: 0

I want millionaires and billionaires and Big Oil companies to pay their fair share. Votes: 0

I don't want to go to Washington to be a co-sponsor of some bland little bill nobody cares about. I don't want to go to Washington to get my name on something that makes small change at the margin. Votes: 0

The broken consumer credit market had to be repaired by making sure that consumers had the right information and could use it effectively. That meant consolidating the bloated patchwork of ineffective agencies and regulations so that a single agency could act as a voice for consumers. Votes: 0

I grew up in the Methodist church and taught Sunday school, and one of my favorite passages of scripture is, 'in as much as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.' Matthew 25:40. Votes: 0

I hear all this, you know, 'Well, this is class warfare, this is whatever.' No. There is nobody in this country who got rich on his own - nobody. Votes: 0

Every time the U.S. government makes a low-cost loan to someone, it's investing in them. Votes: 0

There are very few people at the decision-making table to argue for minimum-wage workers. Very few people. Votes: 0

It is critical that the American people, and not just their financial institutions, be represented at the negotiating table. Votes: 0

We've seen filibusters of bills and nominations that ultimately passed with 90 or more votes. Why filibuster something that has that kind of support? Just to slow down the process and keep the Senate from working. Votes: 0

Because policymakers often rely on think tanks' research when crafting laws and regulations, it's critical to know whether these organizations are truly independent. Votes: 0

You have two pages, that's the whole credit card agreement. The terms are clear and flat and easy to see so anyone can read them. So you could lay four credit cards in front of you and say, 'Oh, that's the one that has the highest rate, that's the one that has the really scary provision that could hurt me.' Votes: 0

America had been a boom-and-bust economy going into the Great Depression - just over and over and over, fortunes were wiped out, ordinary families were crushed under it. Votes: 0

Part of my job is to make sense of all that I hear, and to retell it in a forceful way so that the decision-makers at Treasury can hear it. At least that's how I see it. Votes: 0

A pension is nothing more than deferred compensation. Votes: 0

Families rely on financial services more than ever, but those who need them most - who struggle to make ends meet - too often must contend with sky-high interest rates and tricks and traps buried in the fine print of their loan products. Votes: 0

You can't predict it all. People will tell you to plan things out as best you can. They will tell you to focus. They will tell you to follow your dreams. They will all be right. Votes: 0

I grew up in a family that nearly lost everything, but I ended up in the United States Senate because I grew up in an America that invested in kids like me and built a real future for us. Votes: 0

I held my father's hand while he died of cancer, and it's really painful when you do something like that up close and personal. My mother was already gone, and I was very, very close to my father. Votes: 0

In 1978, we adopted a new Bankruptcy Code in the United States, and a principal part of this was designed to adjust to the new corporation, to find ways to let a corporation that had gotten into financial trouble reorganize itself. A big part of the selling point on this bankruptcy law was, 'It will preserve jobs.' Votes: 0

People have hearts, they have kids, they get jobs, they get sick, they cry, they dance. They live, they love, and they die. And that matters. Votes: 0

I think I grew up with a profound sense of watching people who were good people, who were smart people, who were hardworking people - God, nobody on this Earth worked harder than my mom and dad - and they had very little. Votes: 0

We need a new model: If you can't explain it, you can't sell it. Votes: 0

Does anyone believe that Goldman Sachs is gonna give up a deal that would yield millions of dollars because someone fussed at them behind closed doors? Votes: 0

Truly successful lives are about family. Votes: 0

There is one thing Anthony Weiner and I agree on: there are a lot of smart, hard-working people in the financial industry. Votes: 0

What I've learned is that real change is very, very hard. But I've also learned that change is possible - if you fight for it. Votes: 0

It's better to fight because if you don't fight, you can't win. Besides, even when you don't win, you can change the game. Votes: 0

Once you've gotten your money in balance, you know how much you have to spend on things that are just fun. Votes: 0

We don't win what we don't fight for. Votes: 0

Сount dollars, not pennies. Look at the big-ticket items, in your budget. Votes: 0

Keep a little space in your heart for the improbable. You won't regret it. Votes: 0

It's so easy to focus on what could go wrong, on what else you could do before you try the thing you really want to do. No. Just get out there and try. Votes: 0

Goals work. Pick one debt, and then put every dime into paying down that one debt. Once that debt is paid off, start paying down the next debt. Pretty soon it's time to move from paying debt to building savings. Votes: 0

In a democracy, hostage tactics are the last resort for those who can't otherwise win their fights through elections, can't win their fights in Congress, can't win their fights for the Presidency, and can't win their fights in Courts, For this right-wing minority, hostage-taking is all they have left - a last gasp of those who cannot cope with the realities of our democracy. Votes: 0

It's a simple idea: We all do better when we work together and invest in our future. Votes: 0

Donald Trump cannot, cannot be the man who leads the United States of America. Votes: 0

Being Native American has been part of my story I guess since the day I was born, Votes: 0

Bernie Sanders brought millions of people into the political process. Votes: 0

I'm going to do everything I can to help Hillary Clinton get elected and I'm going to do everything I can to make sure that Donald Trump never comes within shouting distance of the White House. Votes: 0

When conservatives talk about opportunity, they mean opportunities for the rich to get richer, for the powerful to get more powerful. Votes: 0

This country isn't working for working people. It's working only for people at the top. That's not the American dream. That's the American nightmare. Votes: 0

You know, if you're caught with an ounce of cocaine, the chances are good you're going to go to jail. If it happens repeatedly, you may go to jail for the rest of your life. But evidently, if you launder nearly a billion dollars for drug cartels and violate our international sanctions, your company pays a fine and you go home and sleep in your own bed at night, every single individual associated with this. I think that's fundamentally wrong. Votes: 0

The bankers might not have said it in so many words, but gradually their strategy emerged: Target families who were already in a little trouble, lend them more money, get them entangled in high fees and astronomical interest rates, and then block the doors to the bankruptcy exit if they really got in over their heads. Votes: 0

A lot of people think that regulations bring higher costs, but regulation is also about making sure that someone doesn't get to beat out the competition because they're dumping filth in the river or spewing poisons in the air. Votes: 0

Donald Trump is a threat to who we are as a people. Votes: 0

Accountability for the largest financial institutions on Wall Street is the bedrock for a strong economy. Hard-working families and honest businesses cannot survive in a world where the rules don't keep the marketplace honest. Votes: 0

The Republicans underestimated and underestimated and underestimated Donald Trump. And look where that got them. They kept saying, no, no, no, that's not going to happen, we don't have to worry about that. Votes: 0

Americans understand that the game is rigged, and they've had enough of it. They're ready to fight back. They want a Washington that works for them, i think that people are getting more engaged, politically, and they're seeing through a lot of the rhetoric that politicians have been throwing out there for a long time. They want to see some real change, and I think that's what we need to work on. Votes: 0

I get the reason that you should be willing to negotiate sometimes. But you also ought to be willing to throw a punch. Votes: 0

It`s one thing for Hillary Clinton to adopt some anti-Wall Street language to try to appeal to progressives. Votes: 0

We have to rethink how to teach financial education in the 21st century. Votes: 0

When you have no real power, go public - really public. The public is where the real power is. Votes: 0

We lose eight children and teenagers to gun violence every day. If a mysterious virus suddenly started killing eight of our children every day, America would mobilize teams of doctors and public health officials. We would move heaven and earth until we found a way to protect our children. But not with gun violence. Votes: 0

That is especially important as more young people must take on huge debt loads to go to college. Votes: 0

As a Democrat, one of the things that frustrates me the most is there are a lot of times we just don't get in the fight. We ask pretty please if we can have things or we make the argument for why it is the best thing to do, and then wait patiently for the other side to agree to come along. We negotiate. We start our opening position by negotiating. Votes: 0

What do the Republicans say? Donald Trump? They say they're just going to roll back the Dodd-Frank regulations. They want to undermine the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Votes: 0

It's powerfully important that our kids get an education in personal finance. Votes: 0

Get out of debt. In a world of stagnant incomes and rising core expenses like mortgage and health care costs, that's a lot easier said than done. The middle class is under enormous pressure. But families can stop the bleeding by reducing their reliance on debt wherever they can. They can also start fighting back by taking a hard look at whom they do business with and rethinking whether they want tricks-and-traps banks to hold their money. They can also demand that public officials take the side of families over the side of banks. Votes: 0

It takes money to run political campaigns. This is a cancer growing on the soul of our democracy. Votes: 0

Middle class America is acutely aware of how bad this economy is, and it is going to demand changes. I don't think politicians can afford to be complacent. Votes: 0

Look at the big-ticket items, in your budget. Your home or apartment. Your car. Your insurance. If you are overspending on these big monthly bills, then money's draining out of your pocket a lot faster than you can replace it by clipping coupons or buying cheaper coffee. Votes: 0

Right now, with millions of Americans still out of work, and struggling to recover from the worst economic downturn since the great depression, with 40 million Americans dealing with student loans, with millions of people working full-time at minimum wage and still living in poverty, with the big banks getting bigger and the workers getting poorer, and seniors struggling to make ends meet, Republicans in Washington have decided the most important thing for them to focus on is how to deny women access to birth control. Votes: 0

Getting straight with your money is as complicated as a trip to the grocery store: You need a comparison shop, add and subtract, stick with a plan, and ask questions- nothing more. Votes: 0

My parents and I were all afraid of being poor - really poor. Votes: 0

Washington is rigged for the big guys - and no person has more consistently called them out for it than Jon Stewart. Good luck, Jon! Votes: 0

The financial collapse of 2008 got its start with predatory mortgages, that weren't sold by community banks and credit unions, they were sold by fly by night mortgage brokers who had almost zero federal oversight and then the big banks looked over, saw the profit potential and they wanted it bad. So they jumped in and sold millions of these terrible mortgages while the bank regulators just looked the other way. Votes: 0

[My grandkids] are 5, 10, and 15. While they're young and still at home, I think it's all about learning the value of money. Votes: 0

The choice before us is simple. Will we continue to subsidize the dirty fossil fuels of the past, or will we transition to 21st century clean, renewable energy. Votes: 0

The people who are filing for bankruptcy in increasing numbers every year, it's not the poorest. It's not the people at the economic fringes. It's people who worked hard and played by the rules. Votes: 0

Some of the largest financial institutions can build a profit model on tricking people. Votes: 0

I saw at a young age that one bad break can turn a family's financial life upside down. And it has affected everything in my life since then. Votes: 0

You didn't have to worry that marauding bands would come and seize everything in your factory and hire someone to protect against this because of the work the rest of us did. Votes: 0

Evidently there is no need for delay, no need for further study, if the government takes a loss and Wall Street makes a profit, but it is absolutely necessary to delay if homeowners might have a chance to cut their mortgages and stay in their homes. This is wrong, and it is time to fight back! Votes: 0

I grew up in the Methodist church and taught Sunday school, and one of my favorite passages of scripture is, 'in as much as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.'' Matthew 25:40. Votes: 0

Both [of my granddaughters] Octavia and Lavinia have May birthdays. I've just been birthday shopping with them. But the shopping has a budget. I say, "Okay, if you pick this out, then you'll have how much left?" I wait for them to do the calculation, and they'll say, "$18." And we stand there and talk about, hmm, is that sweater really worth that much? And the girls work it through.Doing that takes away some of the magic of money. Votes: 0

We should be talking about expanding Social Security benefits; not cutting them. Votes: 0

The credit card companies have put the loan sharks out of business. Votes: 0

Balancing your money is the key to having enough. Votes: 0

If there had been a Financial Product Safety Commission in place 10 years ago, the current financial crisis would have been averted. Votes: 0

The total amount of money that Wall Street handed out in bonuses last year was double the total income of ALL full-time minimum wage workers. That's obscene. Votes: 0

All three [of my grandkids] earn money around the house, and all three spend their own money. Now I've noticed that when they have to spend their own money on birthday cards, they have decided that homemade cards are so much nicer. Votes: 0

Say good-bye to Dodd-Frank and all of the financial reforms and efforts to try to rein in Wall Street. Just say good-bye to it. That means we can go where Wall Street gets to call the shots again. We saw how that worked out in 2008. Votes: 0

The poor pay more, and that's one of the reasons people get trapped at the bottom of the economic ladder. Votes: 0

There are those who believe justice and dignity are reserved only for some people. Young men have died in police custody, and the growing heel of poverty has worn down harder on children of color...We must fight back. Votes: 0

I oppose the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline. It's an ill-conceived project that would lock us into further dependence on some of the dirtiest fossil fuels on the planet. Votes: 0

Say good-bye to a Supreme Court that is truly open and balanced and looking out for the American people. Instead the Republicans just want to capture a right-wing court for another whole generation. Votes: 0

There is nobody in this country who got rich on his own. Votes: 0

Donald Trump is a genuine threat to America. Votes: 0

We need to remind politicians they don't work for the big banks - they work for us. Votes: 0

Donald Trump is a threat economically to America. Votes: 0

Nobody's safe. Health insurance? That didn't protect 1 million Americans who were financially ruined by illness or medical bills last year. Votes: 0

That's how we build the economy of the future. An economy with more jobs and less debt, we root it in fairness. We grow it with opportunity. And we build it together. Votes: 0

I hope Hillary Clinton runs for president. Votes: 0

I'm proud of my Native American heritage, Votes: 0

Our number one responsibility is to protect Americans from terrorism, that's our job, so being tough on terrorism is enormously important. Votes: 0

I'm really concerned that too-big-to-fail has become too-big-for-trial. Votes: 0

The Republicans had a real advantage over the Democrats for a long time. And the principal advantage they have had is they have concentrated money and concentrated power. And, boy, when it's all concentrated, man, you can organize it, you can use it, you can get out there, you can run those negative ads, you can be effective, you can put money into campaigns. Votes: 0

My mother saved our home with a minimum wage job. But in the 1960s, a minimum wage job would support a family of three above the poverty line. Not today. Not even close. I understood right then that people can work hard, they can play by the rules, and they can still take a hard smack. Votes: 0

We're going to make sure that the people who run for office and get elected are the ones who are going to work for the American people. Votes: 0

Israel has the right to shell Palestinian hospitals and schools out of self defense... Votes: 0

Donald Trump is a person who is an insecure money-grubber who cares about nothing but himself. Votes: 0

The game is rigged to work for those who already have money and power. Votes: 0

I once had half a cup [of coffee], twenty years ago, and I'm still working it off. Votes: 0

I love the work I do. Votes: 0

It's pretty much how we get anything added to the curriculum. When parents said children needed to be computer literate, the schools started responding. The same thing is true of basic financial literacy. Votes: 0

I think the best way it happens is if parents say, this is important for educating my child. Votes: 0

Good for Warren Buffett that he can afford to do that! Some people, sometimes, need to finance a purchase or rent a car, and a credit card becomes a necessity. Votes: 0

Money is bounded; we only have so much of it. Love goes on forever. Votes: 0

I don't like credit cards. They make overspending very easy. They can make life a lot more complex and stressful. Votes: 0

There's a limit here. This is how far we go and we don't go further. And I also think by talking about [gifts] it that way, it avoids the unspoken idea that money is the expression of love. Votes: 0

If you have a choice between buying something and paying down your credit card, pay down your credit card. Votes: 0

We just can't let Donald Trump be the leader of this country. We can line up. We can be part of Hillary Clinton's effort to be the president of the United States and to help do the things we care about in this country - to really help build a future. Votes: 0

Once kids get older, the list is longer. So here goes: Stay out of debt. Sometimes debt is necessary, to buy a home or to get an education, but not to buy a sweater or to eat out. Votes: 0

You know, the old version was about balancing a checkbook. The new version is about the risks of debt, which is so much more widely available. So I think it's important that we design relevant financial literacy courses, and teach them starting early in grade school. Votes: 0

Women tend to vote the economic interests of their families and to speak out on family economic issues. For men, there's often much more focus on the idea of personal failure: "If I'm not winning this great economic game, it must be my fault." Votes: 0

I don't like credit cards. Let me triple underline that. Votes: 0

There's a lot of research on the shift in who deals with money when families get in trouble. In good times, husbands handle the family's finances about 80 percent of the time. But when times turn sour and families start dealing with creditors and managing unpayable bills, women take more active roles. Votes: 0

Big banks churn out page after page of incomprehensible fine print to obscure the cost and risks of checking accounts, credit cards, mortgages and other financial products. The result is that consumers can't make direct product comparisons, markets aren't competitive, and costs are higher. If the playing field is leveled and the broken market fixed, a lot more money will stay in the pockets of millions of hard-working families. That's real stimulus - money to families, without increasing our national debt. Votes: 0

Refinancing won't fix everything that's broken with our [American] higher education system. We've got to bring down the cost of college. And we need more accountability for how schools spend federal dollars. Votes: 0

My daddy's response [to fear of being poor] was to never talk about money or what might happen if it ran out. Votes: 0

Personal responsibility matters. There are no excuses for those who spend money on things they cannot afford. But it's a whole lot harder to act responsibly when consumer credit contracts are designed to be incomprehensible, when prices are obscure and risks are hidden. Votes: 0

Get your money in balance. One rule of thumb is 50/30/20. Spend about 50% of your money on must-haves - things like rent, car payments - and about 30% on wants, while 20% should go toward savings and paying down debt. Votes: 0

Meaningful rules in the consumer credit market can accelerate economic recovery. Rules would increase consumer confidence and, more importantly, weed out all the tricks and traps that sap families of billions of dollars annually. Votes: 0

The administration [ of Barack Obama ]says I`m wrong, that there`s nothing to worry about. They say the deal is nearly done, and they are making a lot of promises about how the deal will affect workers, the environment and human rights - promises. But people like you can`t see the actual deal. Votes: 0

We [US government] have used our taxpayer dollars not only to subsidize these banks but also to subsidize the creditors of those banks and the equity holders in those banks. We could have talked about forcing those investors to take some serious hits on their risky dealings. The idea that taxpayer dollars go in first rather than last - after the equity has been used up - is shocking. Votes: 0

I can remember riding in the car with [my daughter] Amelia, when she was very small, and we'd talk about money the same way we'd talk about sparkly shoes or what had happened at school. Votes: 0

The need for comprehensive reform must not blind us to the urgency of addressing the massive debt that's already crushing our young people. Votes: 0

If you want to find out how strong a company's ethics are, don't listen to what its people say, watch what they do. Votes: 0

I think having a fighter in the lead, a female fighter in the lead, is exactly what America needs. Votes: 0

My response [to fear of being poor]was to study contracts, finance, economics, to plan, to have a goal, to work on that goal. To learn everything I could. I always poked at the things that scared me most. Votes: 0

I wanted to see Democrats out there talking about our core set of issues. And let people around this country vote, let - people have caucuses, let them do it however they're going to do it. Votes: 0

When you talk about Social Security, it's not just enough to say, we're looking at you, this really matters. It's the fact that a million Americans think it matters. Oh, wait, it's 2 million Americans think it matters. No, it's 4 million Americans. It's 6 million, wait, it's 10 million, it's 50 million Americans who care about this. That's how we're going to make change. Votes: 0

My advice is to treat [credit cards] like what they are: little plastic grenades that must be handled very carefully. Votes: 0

Hillary Clinton is a fighter, she's out there, she's tough. Votes: 0

Donald Trump doesn't care who gets hurt, as long as he makes a profit off it. Votes: 0

There is an ugly side to Donald Trump that we all have to stop and think about what's going on here. Votes: 0

No one should have to get a PhD in economics to survive in this economy. Votes: 0

Barack Obama heard the American people. Votes: 0

There are a lot of things that people say about Hillary Clinton. But nobody says that she doesn't know how to throw a punch. Votes: 0

My mother said, if you don't have the cash, don't buy it. And on that, my mother was right. Votes: 0

It's critical to level the playing field, to make prices and risks clear up front, so when someone signs on for a student loan or a mortgage or a credit card, they know the tricks and traps hidden in the fine print. That's why the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has been working on a new financial aid shopping sheet. A shorter, two-page credit card agreement, a simpler mortgage disclosure form. All those are aimed toward helping people understand the basic bargain. Votes: 0

Say good-bye to the Affordable Care Act. That means 20 million people who lose their health insurance, just like that. Votes: 0