Volcker Says U.S. Needs Reforms in Finance, Government

Paul Volcker, the former Federal Reserve chairman whose name was given to a provision of the Dodd-Frank overhaul of financial rules, called for reforms of both government and the financial system in a speech yesterday.

Speaking at New York’s Cooper Union, where Abraham Lincoln was propelled to national prominence with a February 1860 speech, Volcker said the U.S. faces economic and political challenges that present a “grave threat” even if they’re mundane compared to the strife that Lincoln confronted.