Obama and Dems blocked a bill by McCain that would have addressed housing problems

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

And Obama's trying to lay the blame on McCain today? Bullshit.




McCain - Federal Housing Enterprise Regulatory Reform Act of 2005 (Democrats blocked reform)

1/26/2005 | Congressional Research Service

Federal Housing Enterprise Regulatory Reform Act of 2005

Bill Summary

1/26/2005--Introduced. Federal Housing Enterprise Regulatory Reform Act of 2005 - Amends the Federal Housing Enterprises Financial Safety and Soundness Act of 1992 to establish: (1) in lieu of the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), an independent Federal Housing Enterprise Regulatory Agency which shall have authority over the Federal Home Loan Bank Finance Corporation, the Federal Home Loan Banks, the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae), and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac); and (2) the Federal Housing Enterprise Board. Sets forth operating, administrative, and regulatory provisions of the Agency, including provisions respecting: (1) assessment authority; (2) authority to limit nonmission-related assets; (3) minimum and critical capital levels; (4) risk-based capital test; (5) capital classifications and undercapitalized enterprises; (6) enforcement actions and penalties; (7) golden parachutes; and (8) reporting. Amends the Federal Home Loan Bank Act to establish the Federal Home Loan Bank Finance Corporation. Transfers the functions of the Office of Finance of the Federal Home Loan Banks to such Corporation. Excludes the Federal Home Loan Banks from certain securities reporting requirements. Abolishes the Federal Housing Finance Board.

[Nbadan]

How could the Dems block anything in 2005? They didn't have the votes. The Repubs pushed through ANYTHING they wanted. Hell, in 2008, the Dems still don't have enough votes to override a veto. Hence, can't get much done.

Bush received virtually everything he has wanted over the first 4 years in office. He vetos anything the Dems try and push through. If this was something he really wanted, it would have happened. Bypassing Congress is nothing new for this administration.

Besides your supporting a candidate who was at the forefront of mortgage loan deregulation that started his rock sliding downhill...


John McCain, Deregulation Hawk, Criminal


John McCain’s affinity for supporting the deregulation of major industries puts him in league with the worlds most notorious corporate criminals. Deregulation is the tool of the super rich corporate criminal class, and John McCain is their poster child.

First McCain supported deregulation of the Savings and Loan industry. All the while accepting lavish gifts and trips on private jets from Charles Keating who would benefit directly form the legislation. This led to rampant theft of customer savings. The Savings and Loan industry then crashed costing the American taxpayers $30 Billion. McCain was indicted for corruption and Keating went to prison.

Then McCain followed that mess with deregulation of the energy industry. This created kaos in the energy markets, the Enron scandal, and cost rate payers across the country $20 billion in manipulated energy costs. Within a year all competition for gas and oil was gone and prices began rising. Further deregulation of the energy commodities market closed the deal. Now the giant energy conglomerates could own the gas stations, the oil rigs, the refineries, and thanks to John McCain, they now could create their own hedge funds to manipulate supply, demand and the financial markets. A sweet deal for Exxon Mobile who this year raked in more profits than any company in the history of the world, and payed their CEO $500 million in bonuses, while spending less that 2 million to develop new sources of oil from the more than 10 million acres of undeveloped US oil leases Exxon holds.

That was not enough for our hero John McCain. He then supported deregulation of the Mortgage industry which led to rampant lender abuse and the current mortgage crisis. Now with the just passed bailout legislation this will cost taxpayers $150 Billion.

See any pattern here? The next time you hear John McCain spouting his support for deregulation remember, deregulation is the tool that corporate criminals use to steal tax payer money. Anyone supporting it is by default either a fool or a con man trying to pick your pockets.

The real problem with ignorant politicians like John McCain is not the erroneous bloviations on policy that they rehearse and spout whenever the audience fits the message. It is that the real intellectual criminals, Charles Keating in the case of the Savings and Loan scandal, Ken Lay in the case of the Enron scandal, and Senator Phil Graham the architect of the Mortgage meltdown, can twist and manipulate these weak minded political tools to their own ends, with the fools like McCain never even realizing they being manipulated.

Let’s all see John McCain for the wimpy say anything to appease voters, corporate tool that he is. No on McCain 2008, No more tools in politics.

Politcor (http://www.politicor.com/uncategorized/john-mccain-deregulation-hawk-criminal/)

Not saying that regulation wasn't needed, but don't act like McCain was gonna be the savior and not part of the mortgage loan bailout scandal problem that is today costing taxpayers billions...

[whottt]

Mr. President, this week Fannie Mae’s regulator reported that the company’s quarterly reports of profit growth over the past few years were “illusions deliberately and systematically created” by the company’s senior management, which resulted in a $10.6 billion accounting scandal.

The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight’s report goes on to say that Fannie Mae employees deliberately and intentionally manipulated financial reports to hit earnings targets in order to trigger bonuses for senior executives. In the case of Franklin Raines, Fannie Mae’s former chief executive officer, OFHEO’s report shows that over half of Mr. Raines’ compensation for the 6 years through 2003 was directly tied to meeting earnings targets. The report of financial misconduct at Fannie Mae echoes the deeply troubling $5 billion profit restatement at Freddie Mac.

The OFHEO report also states that Fannie Mae used its political power to lobby Congress in an effort to interfere with the regulator’s examination of the company’s accounting problems. This report comes some weeks after Freddie Mac paid a record $3.8 million fine in a settlement with the Federal Election Commission and restated lobbying disclosure reports from 2004 to 2005. These are entities that have demonstrated over and over again that they are deeply in need of reform.

For years I have been concerned about the regulatory structure that governs Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac—known as Government-sponsored entities or GSEs—and the sheer magnitude of these companies and the role they play in the housing market. OFHEO’s report this week does nothing to ease these concerns. In fact, the report does quite the contrary. OFHEO’s report solidifies my view that the GSEs need to be reformed without delay.

I join as a cosponsor of the Federal Housing Enterprise Regulatory Reform Act of 2005, S. 190, to underscore my support for quick passage of GSE regulatory reform legislation. If Congress does not act, American taxpayers will continue to be exposed to the enormous risk that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pose to the housing market, the overall financial system, and the economy as a whole.




Suck a cock Dan.

[whottt]

Next thing you'll be saying McCain isn't in favor of campaign finance reform.


What you're doing is wrong Dan.

[MannyIsGod]

Next thing you'll be saying McCain isn't in favor of campaign finance reform.


What you're doing is wrong Dan.

LOL McCain Finegold is a joke.

[Anti.Hero]

The dems have profited off Fannnie/Freddie but Obama won't tell you that. Hell, HE has received lots from them.

A NEW politician and the dude can't even admit that? Just another empty suit same ol' scummy politician.

[whottt]

LOL McCain Finegold is a joke.

Compared to who? Obama?

[spurster]

Don't worry. The economy is fundamentally sound. And eliminating earmarks will solve all our problems.

[whottt]

Don't worry. The economy is fundamentally sound. And eliminating earmarks will solve all our problems.


''These two entities -- Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac -- are not facing any kind of financial crisis,'' said Representative Barney Frank of Massachusetts, the ranking Democrat on the Financial Services Committee. ''The more people exaggerate these problems, the more pressure there is on these companies, the less we will see in terms of affordable housing.''





"Mr. President, this week Fannie Mae's regulator reported that the company's quarterly reports of profit growth over the past few years were "illusions deliberately and systematically created" by the company's senior management, which resulted in a $10.6 billion accounting scandal.

The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight's report goes on to say that Fannie Mae employees deliberately and intentionally manipulated financial reports to hit earnings targets in order to trigger bonuses for senior executives. In the case of Franklin Raines, Fannie Mae's former chief executive officer, OFHEO's report shows that over half of Mr. Raines' compensation for the 6 years through 2003 was directly tied to meeting earnings targets. The report of financial misconduct at Fannie Mae echoes the deeply troubling $5 billion profit restatement at Freddie Mac.

The OFHEO report also states that Fannie Mae used its political power to lobby Congress in an effort to interfere with the regulator's examination of the company's accounting problems. This report comes some weeks after Freddie Mac paid a record $3.8 million fine in a settlement with the Federal Election Commission and restated lobbying disclosure reports from 2004 to 2005. These are entities that have demonstrated over and over again that they are deeply in need of reform.

[spurster]

In 2005 the House had their own version of "GSE Reform", which by the final vote, appears to be bipartisan.

http://www.allbusiness.com/finance/3596690-1.html

HOUSE PASSES GSE REFORM BILL
Publication: Mortgage Banking
Date: Thursday, December 1 2005

...

H.R. 1461 cleared the House floor by a vote of 331 to 90 following numerous proposed amendments and over the objections of the White House, which sought stronger limits on the growth of Fannie and Freddie's mortgage portfolios."

...

"While differences may remain over this or that provision, I believe consensus is not only reachable, but essential, and the best place to reach it will be in the House-Senate conference," said Baker [R-Ohio].

[spurster]

Here's another BIPARTISAN bill passing the House in 2007, interestingly cosponsored by Barney Frank, so I guess he changed his mind.

http://goliath.ecnext.com/coms2/summary_0199-6789480_ITM

GSE reform bill passes House.
Publication Date: 01-JUL-07
Publication Title: Mortgage Banking

... the House's 313-104 vote approv[ed] the Federal Housing Finance Reform Act of 2007 (H.R. 1427) in mid-May ...

H.R. 1427 would overhaul the regulatory oversight of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Banks by creating a new, independent regulator with broad powers analogous to current banking regulators.

The regulator's primary responsibility would be to ensure the safety and soundness of the institutions. In addition, the bill creates an off-budget and non-taxpayer-financed affordable-housing fund that will dedicate hundreds of millions of dollars for the construction, maintenance and preservation of affordable housing. The first year of the fund would be dedicated to the hurricane-stricken areas of the Gulf Coast, and billions of dollars would be spent over the next five years for affordable housing nationwide.

The bipartisan bill was originally introduced by House Financial Services Committee Chairman Rep. Barney Frank (D-Massachusetts), along with Reps. Richard Baker (R-Louisiana), Mel Watt (D-North Carolina) and Gary Miller (R-California).

[spurster]

With my own brief internet research, it is difficult to be certain about why these House bills died in the Senate. The Senate GOP had their own version of reform in 2005 and 2007 (the 2005 version cosponsored by McCain). One issue causing the deadlock appears to be over any "affordable-housing fund" (GOP against, Democrats for). In any case, it appears that Senate could not agree to the compromises reached in the House.

However, it is clear that the Democrats were behind "reform", too, and the block was over issues that the Senate refused to compromise on.

[hitmanyr2k]

How could the Dems block anything in 2005? They didn't have the votes. The Repubs pushed through ANYTHING they wanted. Hell, in 2008, the Dems still don't have enough votes to override a veto. Hence, can't get much done.

Bush received virtually everything he has wanted over the first 4 years in office. He vetos anything the Dems try and push through. If this was something he really wanted, it would have happened. Bypassing Congress is nothing new for this administration.


Don't let facts get in the way :lol

The bill got stuck in a Republican controlled committee but somehow Democrats blocked it :lol Did this bill even reach the Senate floor to be voted on?

[Gino]

If you think that a bill can't be blocked if you don't control the majority, then you need to retake your junior high "civics" course.

One of the founding fathers biggest realizations is that the majority is not always right. So they instituded several ways the minority could block legislaton.

[hitmanyr2k]

With my own brief internet research, it is difficult to be certain about why these House bills died in the Senate. The Senate GOP had their own version of reform in 2005 and 2007 (the 2005 version cosponsored by McCain). One issue causing the deadlock appears to be over any "affordable-housing fund" (GOP against, Democrats for). In any case, it appears that Senate could not agree to the compromises reached in the House.

However, it is clear that the Democrats were behind "reform", too, and the block was over issues that the Senate refused to compromise on.

From my research the bill McCain co-sponsored never even made it to the Senate.

Right here...plain as day.
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s109-190

So exactly how did Democrats block this bill when they never saw it? Republicans are so dumb :lol Keep drinking that Kool-aid fellas.

[DarkReign]

If you think that a bill can't be blocked if you don't control the majority, then you need to retake your junior high "civics" course.

One of the founding fathers biggest realizations is that the majority is not always right. So they instituded several ways the minority could block legislaton.


Please expound on this "mechanism" you speak of in regards to the House of Representatives.

The mechanism you speak of is the fillibuster, but that only applies in the Senate (and can be overturned).

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

With my own brief internet research, it is difficult to be certain about why these House bills died in the Senate. The Senate GOP had their own version of reform in 2005 and 2007 (the 2005 version cosponsored by McCain). One issue causing the deadlock appears to be over any "affordable-housing fund" (GOP against, Democrats for). In any case, it appears that Senate could not agree to the compromises reached in the House.

However, it is clear that the Democrats were behind "reform", too, and the block was over issues that the Senate refused to compromise on.

Yes, and the same affordable housing shit that the Dems wouldn't budge over then has contributed significantly to the housing meltdown we're all watching occur right now. But hey, even if someone's on welfare, has no job, they should be able to take out a loan for a $200K home. Just ask the Dems.

[hitmanyr2k]

Yes, and the same affordable housing shit that the Dems wouldn't budge over then has contributed significantly to the housing meltdown we're all watching occur right now. But hey, even if someone's on welfare, has no job, they should be able to take out a loan for a $200K home. Just ask the Dems.

Yes, yes...blame it all on the Democrats. By the way, where did you get that dumbass article that started this stupid thread to begin with? Since McCain's co-sponsored bill went absolutely nowhere I'm wondering how the Democrats supposedly "blocked" it.

Did you even research this yourself or did you just accept it as gospel like some idiot sheep and start posting it? :lol

[cool hand]

....as I regurgitate everything Sean Hannity (a known liar) says.

[spurster]

The 2005 passed the Senate Committee by a party line vote (GOP in majority at that point). Likely the Senate Democrats blocked it (or would have) in the full Senate. On the other hand, the Senate Republicans blocked the House bill. My hazy recollection is that the Senate Democrats were leery of House-Senate conferences at that time because the Republicans would gut the provisions that the Democrats favored.

AH's (apparently) noncompromising stance is the sort of thing that has kept a lot of legislation locked up in the Senate. We would have had better controls in place if the Democrats and Republicans were not playing politics with the bill. Certainly not the ideal of either party, but better. We see the same sort of thing now with differing energy proposals now. If you want to actually pass something, both sides have to give in. If you are not going to give in, don't complain about nothing being done because that is why nothing is being done.

[hitmanyr2k]

The 2005 passed the Senate Committee by a party line vote (GOP in majority at that point). Likely the Senate Democrats blocked it (or would have) in the full Senate. On the other hand, the Senate Republicans blocked the House bill. My hazy recollection is that the Senate Democrats were leery of House-Senate conferences at that time because the Republicans would gut the provisions that the Democrats favored.

AH's (apparently) noncompromising stance is the sort of thing that has kept a lot of legislation locked up in the Senate. We would have had better controls in place if the Democrats and Republicans were not playing politics with the bill. Certainly not the ideal of either party, but better. We see the same sort of thing now with differing energy proposals now. If you want to actually pass something, both sides have to give in. If you are not going to give in, don't complain about nothing being done because that is why nothing is being done.

Nope, AH's stance is that "Obama and the Dems" (sounds like a rock group :lol) blocked a bill that McCain had supposedly passed. Look at the title of this thread lol. None of that happened at all. McCain co-sponsored a bill written by Chuck Hagel that was introduced January 26, 2005 and it went NOWHERE. Wasn't voted on by the house or the senate. It wasn't even debated. It just sat with the GOP controlled committee.

It's all right here...
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s109-190

Apparently Aggie didn't research any of this and like the typical sheep made a thread about something that's very much off base. These people need to stop drinking the kool-aid given to them by hacks like Sean Hannity on Faux news and start researching some of this shit.

[2centsworth]

Their entire goal over the past two years was to destroy the economy so that they could would the presidency.

Same thing they did yesterday with that BS energy bill.

[George Gervin's Afro]

Their entire goal over the past two years was to destroy the economy so that they could would the presidency.

Same thing they did yesterday with that BS energy bill.

Any sources to back this ridiculous claim?

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

Nope, AH's stance is that "Obama and the Dems" (sounds like a rock group :lol) blocked a bill that McCain had supposedly passed. Look at the title of this thread lol. None of that happened at all. McCain co-sponsored a bill written by Chuck Hagel that was introduced January 26, 2005 and it went NOWHERE. Wasn't voted on by the house or the senate. It wasn't even debated. It just sat with the GOP controlled committee.

It's all right here...
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s109-190

Apparently Aggie didn't research any of this and like the typical sheep made a thread about something that's very much off base. These people need to stop drinking the kool-aid given to them by hacks like Sean Hannity on Faux news and start researching some of this shit.

I never said McCain passed it. My problem is Obama coming out and trying to blame McCain for all this shit going down this week.

McCain saw it coming a while back, but got CBed on it because of the Democraptic idea that every American deserves access to cheap financing to buy a home.

Yes, some Republicans were also culpable in this utopian dream, and they all suck dick too.

[whottt]

Nope, AH's stance is that "Obama and the Dems" (sounds like a rock group :lol) blocked a bill that McCain had supposedly passed. Look at the title of this thread lol. None of that happened at all. McCain co-sponsored a bill written by Chuck Hagel that was introduced January 26, 2005 and it went NOWHERE. Wasn't voted on by the house or the senate. It wasn't even debated. It just sat with the GOP controlled committee.


False..it passed in the House. It got shot down in the Senate...by the Democrats....and don't let the date mislead you, this bill was on the docket until 2007. It most certainly was the fucking Democrats that shot it down.




It's all right here...
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s109-190

Apparently Aggie didn't research any of this and like the typical sheep made a thread about something that's very much off base. These people need to stop drinking the kool-aid given to them by hacks like Sean Hannity on Faux news and start researching some of this shit.

Apparently you don't know how Congress works.


Hint: FannieMae and FreddieMac contributed heavily to Obam's campaign.

Hint: Franklin Raines, the head of FannieMae, is Obama's Housing Advisor.


Just remember when you pay your tax dollars...you are replacing the money Franklin Raines stole...that's what your tax dollars will be doing.


This isn't guilt by association, like you idiot saw between Cheney and Haliburton, retroactive to the time when Haliburton employed Cheneny...this is an actual money trail.


Blatant.

[spurster]

False..it passed in the House. It got shot down in the Senate...by the Democrats....and don't let the date mislead you, this bill was on the docket until 2007. It most certainly was the fucking Democrats that shot it down.

whottt, did you ever pass any reading comprehension test? The House bill was different from the Senate bill (please note the key word "different"). The House bill never, ever went anywhere in the Senate after it arrived. Come up with the link that proves otherwise, or shut your lying mouth.



Apparently [whottt] don't know how Congress works.


Fixed that for you.

[whottt]

whottt, did you ever pass any reading comprehension test? The House bill was different from the Senate bill (please note the key word "different"). The House bill never, ever went anywhere in the Senate after it arrived. Come up with the link that proves otherwise, or shut your lying mouth.

Asshat...I know it never went anywhere in the Senate. The Democrats would not let anyone interfere with FanFred.




Fixed that for you.

What ever...your guy is completely dirty...ignore that at your own peril.

[hitmanyr2k]

Asshat...I know it never went anywhere in the Senate. The Democrats would not let anyone interfere with FanFred.



Apparently the Bush administration didn't want anyone interfering either. They opposed the bill calling it weak.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/legislative/sap/109-1/hr1461sap-h.pdf

[Aggie Hoopsfan]

Apparently the Bush administration didn't want anyone interfering either. They opposed the bill calling it weak.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/legislative/sap/109-1/hr1461sap-h.pdf

So you're saying Obama was on Bush's side on this? I thought Obama was supposed to bring about change, not the same...

[spurster]

Note the dates. The Senate bill was passed by the Senate committee and went nowhere. Later, the House bill (to spell it out for whottt, the two bills were dee-iii-eff-eff-eee-arr-eee-enn-tee) was passed and went nowhere in the Senate. My take is that neither party at that point in time thought this issue was serious enough to solve. The differences between what the two parties wanted were not that great.

from http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s109-190

S. 190 [109th]: Federal Housing Enterprise Regulatory Reform Act of 2005

Last Action: Jul 28, 2005: Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.

from http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h109-1461

H.R. 1461 [109th]: Federal Housing Finance Reform Act of 2005

Passed House 331-90 Oct 26, 2005

Last Action:
Oct 31, 2005: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.

[spurster]

Here is some info on what happened in 2007: a Senate bill, a House bill, and rumors about GOP Senators' opposition to the House bill. The Senate bill was introduced by the GOP, roughly the same as the 2005 Senate bill. The House bill was bipartisan by all appearances. The site reporting the rumor is a pay-for site so all I have is the first 1 1/2 sentences.


http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s110-1100

S. 1100: Federal Housing Enterprise Regulatory Reform Act of 2007

Last Action: Apr 12, 2007: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.


http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h110-1427

H.R. 1427: Federal Housing Finance Reform Act of 2007

Passed House 313-104 May 22, 2007

Last Action: May 24, 2007: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.


http://www.housinganddevelopment.com/hmr/index.php?mod=spub&str=60

GSE Reform Facing Mounting Senate Opposition Over Trust Fund

Senate Republican staffers have used the Memorial Day holiday week-long recess to gather opposition to the House-passed government-sponsored enterprise (GSE) regulatory reform bill, HR1427. Sources tell us key staffers have marching orders from their bosses to find a way to deep-six the affordab... 06/06/2007 12:55 PM

[whottt]

Note the dates. The Senate bill was passed by the Senate committee and went nowhere. Later, the House bill (to spell it out for whottt, the two bills were dee-iii-eff-eff-eee-arr-eee-enn-tee) was passed and went nowhere in the Senate. My take is that neither party at that point in time thought this issue was serious enough to solve. The differences between what the two parties wanted were not that great.


And my take is that it was killed in the Senate in Commitee by the Democrats on the Finance Commitee....namely Chris Dodd the #1 recipient of contributions from Fannie Mae.

My take is that the leading Democratic Politicians were so obviously and clearly being bought to not interfere with Fannie Mae that you have to be a complete and total idiot to not see it.


What the leading Democrats were saying:

''These two entities -- Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac -- are not facing any kind of financial crisis,'' said Representative Barney Frank of Massachusetts, the ranking Democrat on the Financial Services Committee.'

How dare you guys blame the Republicans this..you lying pieces of shit.

Democratic politicians were being bought by these guys. The culprits behind it are on Obama's staff.


McCain is on record as warning against it, introducing legislation to prevent it...

Then..which is the source of this thread:


And now(right before it happened):


McCain in July of 2008:


Americans should be outraged at the latest sweetheart deal in Washington. Congress will put U.S. taxpayers on the hook for potentially hundreds of billions of dollars to bail out Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. It's a tribute to what these two institutions — which most Americans have never heard of — have bought with more than $170-million worth of lobbyists in the past decade.

With combined obligations of roughly $5-trillion, the rapid failure of Fannie and Freddie would be a threat to mortgage markets and financial markets as a whole. Because of that threat, I support taking the unfortunate but necessary steps needed to keep the financial troubles at these two companies from further squeezing American families. But let us not forget that the threat that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pose to financial markets is a tribute to crony capitalism that reflects the power of the Washington establishment.

Fannie and Freddie buy home loans from lending institutions and reissue them as marketable securities — creating a liquid market for mortgage debt that lowers borrowing costs for prospective homeowners. The two institutions have easy access to borrow at low interest rates because they were originally government agencies and continue to be viewed as being backed by the government. The irony is that by bailing them out, Congress is about to make that perception a reality, even though government backing is no longer needed for their original mission. There are lots of banks, savings and loans, and other financial institutions that can do this job.

Fannie and Freddie are the poster children for a lack of transparency and accountability. Fannie Mae employees deliberately manipulated financial reports to trigger bonuses for senior executives. Freddie Mac manipulated its earnings by $5-billion. They've misled us about their accounting, and now they are endangering financial markets. More than two years ago, I said: "If Congress does not act, American taxpayers will continue to be exposed to the enormous risk that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pose." Fannie and Freddie's lobbyists succeeded; Congress failed to act. They've stayed in business, grown, and profited mightily by showering money on lobbyists and favors on the Washington establishment. Now the bill has come due.

What should be done? We are stuck with the reality that they have grown so large that we must support Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac through the current rough spell. But if a dime of taxpayer money ends up being directly invested, the management and the board should immediately be replaced, multimillion dollar salaries should be cut, and bonuses and other compensation should be eliminated. They should cease all lobbying activities and drop all payments to outside lobbyists. And taxpayers should be first in line for any repayments.

Even with those terms, sticking Main Street Americans with Wall Street's bill is a shame on Washington. If elected, I'll continue my crusade for the right reform of the institutions: making them go away. I will get real regulation that limits their ability to borrow, shrinks their size until they are no longer a threat to our economy, and privatizes and eliminates their links to the government.

It's time to get America on the right track by creating the jobs that will build a strong foundation under our housing markets. We need to address the high cost of gasoline and other energy sources, and transform health care to be cheaper, higher quality and built around the needs of patients. But most of all, we need to reform Washington and wrest control from the special interests that have created this problem.

John McCain, a U.S. senator from Arizona, is the presumptive Republican candidate for president.




http://www.tampabay.com/opinion/editorials/article735638.ece






What a bunch of liars Democrats are.

[Anti.Hero]

The dem politicians make the money, the dem supporters hate bush, life is good for dem politicians.

[spurster]

Most House Democrats voted for the House 2005 bill, so a Barney Frank quote from 2003 hardly speaks for the Democrats or how they viewed the situation in 2005. If you still want to pick on Barney Frank, he did vote against the 2005 bill, but was a co-sponsor of the House 2007 bill (both Republicans and Democrats sponsored that bill), which was apparently killed by Senate Republicans. Why don't I see your outrage at the GOP killing reform in 2007 at a time when the situation was clearly worsening?

[obama the mesiah]

http://staging.michaelmoore.com/_images/splash/twofaced.jpgJohnny Two-Faced (http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=12275)

[DarkReign]

Most House Democrats voted for the House 2005 bill, so a Barney Frank quote from 2003 hardly speaks for the Democrats or how they viewed the situation in 2005. If you still want to pick on Barney Frank, he did vote against the 2005 bill, but was a co-sponsor of the House 2007 bill (both Republicans and Democrats sponsored that bill), which was apparently killed by Senate Republicans. Why don't I see your outrage at the GOP killing reform in 2007 at a time when the situation was clearly worsening?

you do realize who youre arguing with, right?

There shouldnt be any wondering about why his "outrage" is partisan.