By U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) | Sept. 20, 2023 | New York Post
Exploiting people through high interest rates is wrong.
In a world of Wall Street excess, that simple idea now sounds foreign.
But for thousands of years, it was basic fairness.
“Thou shalt not lend upon usury to thy brother,” declares Deuteronomy 23:19.
The Western world took that principle to heart.
From the Roman Empire on, nations enforced usury laws that severely restricted interest rates on loans.
[...]
Times have changed. Our leaders forgot why those laws existed in the first place.
[...]
The total amount of credit-card debt is more than $1 trillion — the highest in history.
Delinquent payment rates are at their highest level in a decade.
Compounding the problem, President Joe Biden’s inflationary policies have pushed consumer prices to the stratosphere.
This kicked off a vicious cycle.
And as costs rise, Americans are forced to use their credit cards to cover basic necessities like rent and groceries.
[...]
American households get the short straw: Not only are they paying more for basic necessities, they’re now paying to clean up the Biden administration’s financial mess.
This burden falls heaviest on the nearly 50% of Americans carrying a credit-card balance, many struggling to make ends meet.
[...]
Just this year, Tyson Foods announced chicken-plant closures in small-town Missouri that will force 2,000 people out of work.
Those workers and their families still need to live.
If they end up carrying a credit-card balance, why are they fair game for corporate plunder?
As a nation, we can do better than that.
[...]
Supporting America’s workers and families means tackling the everyday problems they face — not giving handouts to corporations or foreign governments and hoping the benefits will eventually trickle down.
[...]
Old slogans about the magic of the market won’t cut it anymore.
Actually passing a law to cap interest rates is a first step toward a better future — a future rooted in our own tradition.
American workers and families deserve it.
Congress can pass legislation that makes a real difference.
Republicans should step up to take the lead.
Read the entire piece in the New York Post.