It appears that central to the Obama administration’s desire to reform the credit card industry is the marketing of the cards.
In a Meet The Press appearance, National Economic Council Director Larry Summers linked credit card marketing to consumers’ “addiction” to the cards. He also said that consumers had been “deceived” into paying higher rates—perhaps a veiled swipe at marketing.
Today, as the President met with credit card executives at the White House today, the House was working on a bill that included, among other provisions, a prohibition on marketing the cards to minors.
The President, in remarks after the meeting, spoke about ending “fine print” and “confusing terms and conditions” — the latter term (minus the confusing part) familiar to consumers who have seen credit card ads.
