At Hearing for SEC Nominees, Sen. Menendez Expresses Support for Aguilar

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AT HEARING FOR SEC NOMINEES, SEN. MENENDEZ EXPRESSES SUPPORT FOR AGUILAR

Menendez says SEC, caught flat-footed by the credit crisis, must finally get ahead of the curve

At a Senate Banking Committee nominations hearing this afternoon, U.S. Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) voiced his particular support for Luis Aguilar, a nominee for a seat at the Securities and Exchange Commission. Senator Menendez today also expressed the importance of the task at hand for the Securities and Exchange Commission and the nominees to fill three seats at the Commission that have long been vacant.

"I have known Luis for many years and know him to be a very capable and reasonable individual who has developed a strong background in the securities field over the years," said Senator Menendez. "I have full confidence that he will put his thoughtfulness and years of experience to good use at the Commission, and I look forward to his service.

"If one thing is certain, it is that he, Ms. Walters, and Mr. Paredes certainly have their work cut out for them. If there is anything we learned from the meltdown of mortgage-backed securities and the Bear Stearns downfall, it is that we have not kept pace with the markets. Moving forward, our regulators have to be the first, not the last, to know when something is wrong. It sounds simple, but it is a steep challenge."

Below is the full text of Senator Menendez's remarks, as prepared to be delivered or submitted to the record, depending on time constraints:

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Welcome to all the nominees here today. I thank each of you for your service and look forward to hearing from all of you.

I would like to take a moment to discuss the importance, in particular, of the nominees to the Securities and Exchange Commission. As we all know, the Commission has been operating without a full membership, and while they have been carrying forward, the lack of Commissioners has undoubtedly hampered their efforts in the short term. I think we are all in agreement that it is essential we act quickly to move forward these nominees and ensure that the SEC is fully equipped to handle the tasks at hand. And as we know, there are many issues that await these new Commissioners. We will be calling on them to act expeditiously, and we must move them forward as quickly as possible. I thank the Chairman for his efforts to schedule this hearing, and for his desire to fill these critical vacancies.

I am particularly proud that my good friend, Luis Aguilar, is among the nominees to the SEC today. I have known Luis for many years and know him to be a very capable and reasonable individual who has developed a strong background in the securities field over the years. I have full confidence that he will put his thoughtfulness and years of experience to good use at the Commission, and I look forward to his service. If one thing is certain, it is that he, Ms. Walters, and Mr. Paredes certainly have their work cut out for them.

This last year, in particular, has highlighted how critical it is that we have regulators who will exercise vigilant oversight and who are adequately prepared to deal with the worst case scenario, should it occur.

We are facing challenging times for our markets, and frankly, throughout the subprime turmoil and credit crisis, we have seen time and again how those in the regulators' seat were not prepared or equipped to act quickly enough. The challenge now facing the SEC is how to better keep up with financial innovations, how to get ahead of the curve. If there is anything we learned from the meltdown of mortgage-backed securities and the Bear Stearns downfall, it is that we have not kept pace with the markets. Moving forward, our regulators have to be the first, not the last, to know when something is wrong. It sounds simple, but it is a steep challenge.

I sincerely hope that the nominees before us today will help ensure we have a strong commission that will be proactive, that will help sound the warning bells when we need to hear them, and that will be vigilant in not only protecting our markets, but in keeping up with them. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I look forward to hearing from all of the nominees today.

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