Banks and their executives have yet to be held accountable for the “predatory lending, inadequate disclosures, deception, false signatures” and “manipulations of every kind” that led to the loss of millions of Americans’ homes, declares Robert Reich. More alarmingly, they are on the brink of getting away with their actions. Reich explains why the president has to open an investigation to get to the bottom of what happened, and do so now.

This video is the fifth in a series by MoveOn.Org on Occupy Wall Street, the financial crisis and related debates that currently stir the country. Click to access the first, second, third and fourth, and check back at TheNation.com each week for new episodes.

—Elizabeth Whitman