Obama Budget Punishes CFTC While Providing SEC More Than Requested

As the Obama Administration budget was announced today, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) seems to be the agency left out in the cold at a time when regulating over the counter derivatives (OTC) has been identified as a key strategic economic concern.  With between $400 and $600 trillion in previously unregulated derivatives, a significant market crash could literally wipe out the world economy, valued at just over $70 trillion.

In the budget proposal, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was allocated $1.7 billion, representing a slight increase over what had been anticipated.  By...