Interesting juxtaposition, I think, in these two press reports. First, the financial industry is doing all it can to neuter the rules imposed in what I thought was the relatively meak Dodd-Frank changes:

Wall Street and the financial industry spent more to lobby Washington in the first quarter of this year than a year ago when Congress was writing sweeping financial-overhaul legislation, according to a Wall Street Journal review of lobbying reports released Thursday.

The law, known as Dodd-Frank, was adopted nine months ago but banks, credit unions, investment firms and their trade groups now are trying to shape how it is put into practice. The documents show financial-industry lobbyists are spending time with regulators, who are writing hundreds of rules to carry out the law, while pushing Congress to roll-back certain provisions, especially new limits on debit-card fees.

The industry is working to influence a long list of Dodd-Frank rules, including sweeping ones for the nearly $583 trillion derivatives market and restrictions on the size and activities of the largest banks. Many are also weighing in on mortgage-finance issues as policy makers address problems with foreclosures and how to revamp mortgage-lending giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which now are under federal control.

   But, those new rules haven’t hurt profits: [more after the fold]

Goldman Sachs’ first-quarter performance was powered by strong revenues from investments and lending, a sign that new US regulations have not thwarted the bank’s ability to reap profits by deploying its own capital.

   So, shocking as it may seem to all those regulation-hating pundits and politicians, it isn’t hurting the bottom line. In fact, some of us believe that if those dopes and greedy bankers in the financial industry hadn’t fought for de-regulation back in the 1990s, they wouldn’t have lost hundreds of billions of dollars and come for a taxpayer-financed bailout.