[by Larry Goldfarb]

The articles are starting to appear with more frequency enumerating the legacy of the SEC Chairman, May Shapiro.  Her tenure, which began with such promise, seems to be mired in accusations and disappointments. The latest, the demise of her plan to sure up the money market industry was just the latest problem to grip Mary's tenure.

Looking at  the tenure, a large part of the problem concerned the political influences on the process.  The industry exerts such influence on politicians that the SEC has become an ineffective regulator. Congress wont appropriate enough money and the concessioners seem to consult the financial services elite before casting a vote.  The clear answer is to make the SEC substantially nonpartisan.  Perhaps have it report into the Federal Reserve and have the Fed chairman pick the leader.  While the Fed chair is picked by the President, he is thought to be only mildly political with a constituency far beyond the borders of the US.  If the SEC board was picked for non-partisan reasons and had an agenda that sured up the financial system as opposed to, in many cases, advocating for it, I think the system of regulation would be in far better hands.