WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell has decided to support a landmark overhaul of financial regulations, an aide said on Thursday, giving her fellow Democrats a boost as they try to lock down the votes needed for passage.
Cantwell had opposed the measure previously on the grounds that it did not do enough to crack down on risky derivatives trading. Her switch makes it easier for backers to clear the measure and send it to President Barack Obama to sign into law in mid-July.
The most sweeping overhaul of the Wall Street rulebook since the 1930s would impose tighter regulations on financial firms and reduce their profits. It would also boost consumer protections, force banks to reduce risky trading and investing activities and set up a new government process for liquidating troubled financial firms.
The House of Representatives approved a final version of the bill on Wednesday, but Democrats in the Senate have yet to lock down the 60 votes needed to clear a procedural hurdle.
Cantwell's support means that they probably do not have to win over all three Republican moderate senators who supported the bill in previous incarnations but expressed reservations about the final version.
The Senate is expected to take up the bill during the week of July 12.
