Getting Tough On Wall Street?

Monday marked the start of the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission. The commission was created in response to the financial collapse of 2008, and its job is to find out what led to the failure of the United States banking system.
On the first day, four chairmen of the biggest financial institutions in the country were called to testify; Chairmen Blankfien of Goldman Sachs, Chairmen Dimon of JPMorgan Chase, Chairmen Mack of Morgan Stanley, and CEO Moynihan of Bank of America. All expressed concern and understanding when it comes to the pain that the crisis has created for the country, but none were willing to take (or give) any blame.
Meanwhile, President Obama has called for a tax on those same huge Wall Street firms. The tax would be .15% on liabilities on firms with over $50 billion dollars in assets. "My determination to achieve this goal is only heightened when I see reports of massive profits and obscene bonuses at the very firms that owe their continued existence to the American people," said Obama.
When the TARP monies were first made available, first by President Bush and then Obama, there was, rightfully, much public outrage at our tax dollars being used to rescue Wall Street executives. However, it is probably true, based on pronouncements from economist on both sides of the fence, that these measures were necessary. Now, it's payback time! No, literally, it is. These are funds that are desperately needed as this country tries to fight two wars, pay for the health care bill, and rebuild our roads and infrastructure (not to mention the infrastructure of Iraq, Afghanistan, Haiti ... ). While we rely on banks to build our worth and maintain our livelihood, they, too, rely on us. It's about time that we had a President who realizes that, and who is willing to tell Wall Street the hard truths.