The state director of the Missouri Civic Engagement Table takes on payday lending in an op-ed:

It is true the industry would not make high profits with 36 percent APR, but that is not because it is 36 percent; it is because of the two-week loan. Credit unions are making small dollar, short-term loans at much lower interest rates very successfully, but the loan life is six months to a year.

The truth is the industry would not exist with that arbitrary rate cap. And the author agrees that a credit union loan and a payday loan is an apples-to-oranges comparison.