The Democrats’ financial reform bill making its way through the Senate is universally panned as a bad piece of legislation not by Republicans, but by finance experts contacted for this New York Times story.

Andrew W. Lo, an MIT professor, had this illuminating quote:

“Until we understand what the causes were, we may be implementing ineffective and even counterproductive reforms,” said Andrew W. Lo, a finance professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “I understand the need for action. I understand the need for something to be done. But what I expect from political leaders is for them to demonstrate leadership in telling the public that we need to proceed about this in a much more deliberate and rational and thoughtful way.”

That sounds like what Republicans are saying. So I looked up Lo on the Federal Election Commission website to see if he gave money to the GOP. Nope. He maxed out to Obama in 2008 ($2,300) and gave $4,000 to Ed Markey in 2004.

When even liberal Cambridge professors are attacking a signature Democratic Party bill, you know it’s a bad bill.