Sanders says corporate ethics bill is first step

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(Host) Congressman Bernie Sanders says he’s pleased that the U.S. House has given its strong support to legislation dealing with corporate fraud. But Sanders says passage of the bill is only the first step in a larger effort to protect consumers from the inappropriate policies of large businesses.

The legislation passed on Thursday calls for uniform accounting procedures, it includes prison terms for executives who knowingly deceive investors and it prohibits accounting firms from also offering consulting services to their clients. Sanders says it’s a good bill but he argues that a lot more needs to be done:

(Sanders) But what I think we have got to be cognizant of is that corporate greed is a huge problem and this only addresses a very small part of that. You have major corporations who are running abroad now to Bermuda and other countries in order to avoid their taxes. You have large corporations who have cut back on the pensions of their workers and their health care benefits. And meanwhile all of these guys then run to the Congress to get their billions of dollars in corporate welfare.

(Host) This measure now goes to President Bush for his signature

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