Enjoy it while it lasts

US lawmakers have turned protectionism on its head. They seem hell-bent on cutting American bankers down to size. A punishing bonus tax on a large swathe of those working on Wall Street was approved by the House of Representatives on Thursday. That follows an earlier pay cap on the banking elite. The latest measure would impose a 90% tax on some bonuses. That draconian rate would apply to employees who earned more than $250,000, from companies which took more than $5bn of government rescue mone...