Dem predicts Senate financial bill will be stronger than House version

Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) Friday said he believes the final version of the Senate's financial regulatory overhaul will be more robust than the House's version.

Brown, a populist Democrat who has been a leading voice on the Wall Street bill, has introduced an amendment to the bill that would limit the size of large financial firms so they do not become "too big to fail."

“It's going to be tougher than it is now," Brown said in an interview to air on Bloomberg's "Political Capital" Friday evening. "It's going to be tougher than the House bill. It'll come out of conference. It'll be something I'm proud to vote for and something the president is proud to sign."

Republicans lifted their filibuster to begin debate on the bill this week, saying that they scored key assurances from Democrats on closing what they say were loopholes that would have allowed for future bailouts of failed firms.

The House legislation, which passed last year, is considered to be tougher than the Senate's version in some ways, such as the structure of the proposed Consumer Financial Protection Agency (CFPA). But the Senate's bill is thought to more strictly regulate derivatives than the House's version.

House Democratic leaders have said they will conduct a conference to reconcile differences between the two pieces of legislation.

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