Most Americans had to be pleased seeing President Barack Obama sitting down with the heads of credit card companies and telling them they have to change the way they are doing business. Obama said, "The days of any-time, any-reason rate hikes and late fee traps have to end."

American credit card users are outraged over the fact that many big banks and their credit card operations that have benefited from federal bailout money and access to cheap capital have also been raising interest rates on credit card balances and slapping card users with penalties whenever possible. They've also shortened billing cycles and introduced arbitrary rate increases.

The 30-minute meeting at the White House last week sent the message that the president backs efforts in Congress to reform the credit card industry. In fact, Obama says he wants to go further and he should.

The credit card companies argue that there is no need to do anything now, because the Federal Reserve already has approved new rules. The problem: Those rules aren't scheduled to go into effect until July 2010.

Thursday afternoon, Sens. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., and Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., sent a letter asking the Federal Reserve, the Office of Thrift Supervision and the National Credit Union Administration to enforce those rules immediately. Dodd and Schumer wrote in support of an immediate freeze on interest rates for existing credit card balances.

Such immediate action is warranted because credit card companies have reacted to the 2010 changes by pushing up interest rates and hitting customers with fees in order to maximize profits before the new rules kick in. The letter from Dodd and Schumer noted that customers have told them of having "interest rates doubled or tripled overnight, without any misconduct on their part."

The credit card companies would seem to have few friends these days, and tougher rules might be inevitable. But it's worth remembering that major credit card issuers, including MBNA, Citigroup, Discover (Morgan Stanley), Bank One and Bank of America, gave $27.5 million in campaign contributions to members of Congress from 2000 to 2004. They have no doubt spent many millions more on lobbying.

In fact, while Dodd now is talking tough about credit card reform, he is, as the powerful chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, one of the biggest beneficiaries of contributions from banks and other financial companies. He has received millions of dollars for his past campaigns, and is seeking their financial support again for what is expected to be a tough re-election battle.

But public anger might, at least this time, negate the influence of campaign contributions.

Widespread outrage over credit card company practices has pushed Congress to act. Bills in both the House and Senate would go further than the reforms already approved by the Federal Reserve.

The White House has asked for additional consumer relief, including a provision that would require credit card companies to apply customer payments first to the debt that has the highest interest rate. Most credit card companies do exactly the opposite now apply payments to the lowest interest rate balances, thereby maximizing their profits.

At his meeting with credit card company CEOs, Obama said he wants statements that are clearly written and easy to understand. He also suggests the creation of a "plain vanilla" credit card, featuring easy-to-understand terms and conditions.

The House version of credit card reform would ban retroactive interest rate increases on existing balances unless a customer is more than 30 days late making a payment. It also would ban companies from issuing cards to anyone under 18.

An amendment being considered in the House would require 45 days' notice before raising interest rates.

Credit cards are a fact of life for most Americans. They can be a critical help at times of financial emergencies. They also can make it too easy to finance a lifestyle beyond the cardholder's means. But as the recession wears on, most Americans have adopted a more sober and conservative attitude about credit cards.

It's past time for tougher controls over how the big financial firms treat their customers.

Obama set the stage with his meeting last week. Americans will be watching closely to see what he and Congress actually do.