K-STREET, 10,000 FEET: Home Depot, big name retailers could benefit from Dick Durbin’s credit card gambit
THE LOWDOWN:
When it comes to Americans’ credit card usage, keeping the market open is of the utmost importance. Sadly, some lawmakers in Congress want to see that market changed, and big box retailers are the ones who will benefit the most.
Big name retailers like the Home Depot are poised to get serious benefits from the controversial credit card bill introduced by Sen. Dick Durbin (D., Ill.), the Credit Card Competition Act (CCCA).
A source told the Reporter that the “unintended consequences” of Sen. Durbin’s proposal are well-known and the proposed government mandates amount to “giveaways to the nation’s largest corporate megastores.”
Additionally, the source decried the lawmakers pushing the CCCA as “the recipients of [mega-store’s] largest campaign contributions.”
When it comes to Americans’ credit card usage, keeping the market open is of the utmost importance. Sadly, some lawmakers in Congress want to see that market changed, and big box retailers are the ones who will benefit the most.
Big name retailers like the Home Depot, whose founder Ken Langone recently said President Trump’s pro-American tariffs were ‘bullsh**,” are poised to get serious benefits from the controversial credit card bill introduced by Sen. Dick Durbin (D., Ill.), the Credit Card Competition Act (CCCA).
As previously reported by the Washington Reporter, the bill would require the Federal Reserve Board of Governors to regulate network competition in credit card transactions. However, this bill has potential downsides of slowing down the economy, resulting in a potential $227 billion economic activity loss and approximately 156,000 jobs lost, according to a 2025 study from top global economic forecaster Oxford Economics Research.
A source told the Reporter no one could say this bill has “unintended consequences” because the harmful effects of these proposed mandates are well-documented.
The source noted that Durbin’s proposed legislation puts similar mandates on credit cards as he did with debit cards more than a decade ago, which killed debit card reward programs, reduced the availability of free checking, and led to more Americans becoming underbanked.
Additionally, the source decried the mega-stores pushing the CCCA as “turning to the recipients of their largest campaign contributions to push for a government takeover of your credit card.”
A person close to President Donald Trump told the Washington Reporter in March that “Dick Durbin opposed all of Trump’s nominees” and that the Illinois Democrat “is now opposing his pro-American growth agenda by introducing a Big Retail/woke credit card act.”
“Republicans should oppose it,” the person said.
Durbin’s home state of Illinois recently passed a similar bill, providing corporate megastores with a massive financial windfall while mom and pop shops and other small businesses were left out to dry. On top of that, consumers in Illinois were left footing the bill.
The Illinois law would prohibit credit card companies from imposing interchange tax fees on tips and sales taxes associated with commerce in the state. It’s projected that ten large retailers will absorb over 21 percent of the estimated $118 million reduction in the fees.
Additionally, 1.3 million small businesses in Durbin’s home state would only expect to save only $56 on average — each — and the same businesses would have to pay more money to upgrade their payment systems.
