Chris Dodd is heading into retirement. On the way out, he tried to weaken a key part of the financial reform package but ruffled a few feathers:

His amendment would have delayed for two years any ban on derivatives trading and given the Treasury Secretary the ability to quash the proposal outright. Liberal Democrats loudly voiced their opposition, claiming Mr. Dodd was trying to gut a central part of their effort to crack down on Wall Street banks. Wall Street banks complained almost as loudly, saying the two-year window would create uncertainty and make it nearly impossible for them to offer derivatives contracts.

   Let’s see how this all pans out. But, I still believe we’ve missed a chance to truly change the system, mainly to cut the size of Wall Street down to size.