Can the Senate Deliver Finance Reform in an Election Year?

The US Senate's next item of business is finance reform, with Democrats trying to draw up an offer Republicans can't refuse. The provision banks hate most in the House version of reform is an independent agency for consumer protection that's been compared to the so-called “public option,” that divided Democrats to the GOP's benefit during the healthcare debate.  But the politics of finance reform are very different. With popular anger focused on Wall Street, should banks that are “too big to fail” be regulated or cut down to size? Should a consumer protection agency be independent or part of the Federal Reserve?