Brown gets top Dem lot on Senate banking panel

Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) will serve as the top Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee in the new Congress, he announced on Friday.

{mosads}He is likely to serve opposite Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.), the expected chairman.

“This committee is about ensuring a fair set of rules for all financial institutions while protecting taxpayers and consumers,” Brown said in a statement. “We must ensure transparency and accountability for Wall Street and access to credit on fair terms for Main Street.”

There was some uncertainty as to whether Sens. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) or Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) — both of whom outrank Brown on the Banking Committee — would opt to take the spot.

Brown is seen as one of the more progressive members in the Senate and on the committee. He has been an outspoken critic of big banks and aligned himself with Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), another populist committee member.