"When Lehman Brothers fell, they took not just the rest of Wall Street, but all of Main Street, down with them. Yet, one year later, the greedy CEOs who caused the collapse are unremorseful, unrepentant, and virtually unchanged," said SEIU Secretary-Treasurer Anna Burger, following President Obama's speech yesterday on the anniversary of the collapse of Lehman Brothers. While the economy continues to recover, President Obama warned, "normalcy cannot lead to complacency."

Watch President Obama's speech yesterday from Wall Street's Federal Hall:

'Business as Usual'?

"You'd think that the collapse of over 90 banks in one year alone would be a powerful 'lesson learned' for the titans at big financial houses, but on Wall Street, it's back to 'business as usual,' said Burger. After bailing out banks to the tune of $4.7 trillion following the financial collapse, American taxpayers were then hit with the hidden costs of our bank-induced recession: foreclosures, unemployment and bankruptcies.

Now the big banks and financial corporations are hitting us a third time, by lobbying against meaningful reforms that could prevent a repeat of the crisis in the future.The U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Tom Donohue and his CEO allies might not think so, but America can't afford their reckless and selfish behavior any longer.

The current regulatory framework simply doesn't provide adequate protection to consumers--we need Congress to reform our financial system, fund strict enforcement of the rules, and give long term shareholders the power they need to reign in the out-of-control corporate elite. Let's stop this cycle before more jobs are lost, more homes are foreclosed, and more retirement accounts are wiped out. Don't let the U.S. Chamber and Big Banks delay consumer protection any longer.