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Congressional Democrats: Ain’t nothing wrong with Frannie and Freddie

Of course, that was then…

And this is now: suddenly — after Bush administration attempts in 2003 to avert this crisis, as well as John McCain’s 2005 attempt, both of which were opposed by Congressional Dems — according to Barack Obama we “have to recognize that [the current mortgage / credit crisis] is a final verdict on eight years of failed economic policies promoted by George Bush, supported by Senator McCain […].”

In Obama’s mind, it was he who sounded the alarm bells — not those actually trying to pass legislation for tougher oversite of a government run enterprise. “Two years ago,” Obama noted last evening, “I warned that, because of the subprime lending mess, because of the lax regulation, that we were potentially going to have a problem and tried to stop some of the abuses in mortgages that were taking place at the time.”

Uh huh. But what did you do about it, Senator? Other than, you know, take money from Frannie and Freddie while inviting Raines and Johnson to advise your campaign? Write a strongly worded letter?

True to form, I guess you did what you normally do: signaled “present,” then just hoped things would change.

Leadership you can count on!

(h/t Texas Rainmaker, who advises we “throw the bums out”)

64 Replies to “Congressional Democrats: Ain’t nothing wrong with Frannie and Freddie”

  1. Rich Cox says:

    All history begins when the chosen one announced candidacy.

    So it shall be.

  2. dre says:

    CSPAN the taxpayers friend.

  3. Aldo says:

    From the perspective of the Democrats/MSM the situation could not be any more ideal: They are spinning the current crisis as a market failure requiring more government management of the economy, which translates into a bailout bill that funnels millions of dollars to ACORN for pro-Obama voter fraud campaigns. What’s not to like?

  4. dre says:

    But don’t you dare question their “patriotism”:

    Pelosi expressed confidence in Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) and Rep. Chris Dodd (D-CT) as negotiators in this process.She also vocally attacked Republicans, saying they were unpatriotic in refusing to go to the table earlier in the week, but said she is glad the two sides are nearing a deal.

    here

  5. Sdferr says:

    I always worry about the editor and whatever liberties may have been taken. (Untoward liberties taken, damage done to believers I figure.)

    So, meanwhile, my blood still boiling, off to the congressional record with me to find a transcript then.

  6. Sean M. says:

    Hope. Change. The Big Lie You Can Believe In.

  7. Jeffersonian says:

    Sure, O! issued a warning. The potential targets took keen notice of this warning and sprang into action, larding up O!’s campaign coffers with hundreds of thousands in cash. O!, well greased, then slipped back into silence, his gambit having paid off handsomely.

  8. Suggestion: come up with a few concise, easy-to-understand questions on this topic and then encourage people to go ask them of BHO on videos for Youtube. Embarrassing him on videos for Youtube would be very effective.

  9. Topsecretk9 says:

    Disgusting.

  10. geoffb (JARAIP) says:

    “She also vocally attacked Republicans, saying they were unpatriotic “

    Oh my, they refused to raise taxes. Or is that now down the “memory hole” for another meme.

    I think the actual definition of “patriotic” they use is:
    Patriotism is doing whatever the Democratic Party leadership asks of you at any particular moment.

    They are the country and how dare anyone oppose them. Royalty, royal crap.

  11. Hubris says:

    ”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.”

    That’s pretty damning [/end ostentatious, self-serving display of fair-mindedness]

  12. Aldo says:

    BTW, the Volokh Conspiracy is reporting that they have studied Senator Dodd’s ACORN provision, and they have determined that it will “siphon off tens or hundreds of billions of dollars to the Housing Trust Fund and the Capital Magnet Fund even if there are no net profits in the $700 billion venture.”

    (emphasis mine)

  13. Darleen says:

    As I said on the Crisis thread about this video, there are some really jawdropping statements from Democrats here… from Maxine Waters praising Raines, to Lacy Clay declaring the hearings “the political lynching of Franklin Raines”, to Barney Frank doing his “No problem here, guys!”

    And you HAVE to love the Frank Raines testimony:

    question @ 7:10 from Republican Christopher Shays:

    And you have about 3% of your portfolio set aside. If a bank gets below 4% they are in deep trouble. So I just want you to explain to me why I should be satisfied with 3%.

    Raines answer @ 7:45

    “These assets are so riskless that their capital for holding them should be under 2%.

    Riskless. Riskless.

    But somehow this is the failure of Capitalism!!!!!

  14. Victor. says:

    Obama represented Calvin Roberson in a 1994 lawsuit against Citibank, charging the bank systematically denied mortgages to African-American applicants and others from minority neighborhoods.

    http://www.suntimes.com/news/politics/obama/700499,CST-NWS-Obama-law17.article

  15. Sdferr says:

    Here is Raines full statement, for instance:

    Mr. RAINES: Because banks do not—there are not any banks who only have multifamily and single-family loans. I think if you check, banks are now arguing that their capital for those loans should only be 2 percent or less. I mean, that is the argument they are making right here in Washington today, that these assets are so riskless that their capital for holding them should be under 2 percent.

    So, a game, even if a small game, is being played there.

    Still, in the full context of Rep. Shays line of questioning, Raines argument is a crappy one from a prudential point of view.

  16. Jeffersonian says:

    “These assets are so riskless that their capital for holding them should be under 2%.

    Raines is a Rhodes Scholar. Where’s Nishi when you need a good post on the virtues of putting The Smartest Guys in the Room in charge?

  17. Sdferr says:

    Oh, here is the transcript of the hearing, Wednesday, October 6, 2004 U.S. House of Representatives, Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance, and Government Sponsored Enterprises, Committee on Financial Services.

  18. Great Mencken's Ghost! says:

    Actually, Obie voted against McCain’s legislation in 2005, so Raines got his money’s worth…

  19. dre says:

    ” Chairman BAKER. Mr. Shays?
    Mr. SHAYS. Thank you.I am new to this committee and I was absolutely shocked when we looked at Enron and WorldCom Fannie and Freddie. The board of directors did not do their job. The management did not do its job. The employees did not speak out. The lawyers in the firm were facilitators. The rating agencies did not do their job. It scared the hell out of me, frankly.”

  20. Jeffersonian says:

    Thank you, Sdferr, for that link. It’s clear that Raines was saying the banks were saying that, but he appears to agree with them regarding the risks present in mortgage lending to justify the lower reserve requirements of Fannie.

  21. Pablo says:

    Bush neds to be calling these fuckers out, by name and referencing the quotes and votes.

    Is anyone interested in the truth anymore? Is reality dead?

  22. Sdferr says:

    By the way, that tape is a mash-up of who knows how many different hearings. I’ve run a number of searches on the words of individual speakers (Meeks, Waters, Frank) and so far come up empty. This on approx ten hearings ranging from 2001 to 2005 and perhaps five different committees. But not all hearings are necessarily available as yet. Apparently, some can take years to be transcribed.

  23. twolaneflash says:

    Bush is asleep or complicit, Congress and The Media have revealed their Marxist souls, the financiers have absconded with the funds. Good night, America.

  24. happyfeet says:

    The media hates your children.

  25. dre says:

    Can we start a dead pool for banks?

  26. Darleen says:

    Sdferr

    just a point of trivia, but I’m looking through the transcript you linked and I’m amazed at the typos.

  27. SteveG says:

    racist

  28. SteveG says:

    I renounce everyone here… except for me!!!!

  29. dre says:

    I’ve already renounced me so take yours back

  30. SteveG says:

    This one needs to go viral too.
    The American people need to know, and we need to bypass the MSM because this stuff is already know by the networks

  31. The Monster says:

    Note well the reaction to someone “attacking” a black liberal was to play The Card. The people who had concerns about Raines’ policies were imputed to have opposed him personally for the obvious reason of his blackness.

    It isn’t hard to imagine that an awful lot of voters just don’t want to go through four years of opposition to every policy of 0! being tainted as some form of coded racism. At some point, people who have habitually given the benefit of the doubt to Persons of Color out of some vague guilt will get sick and tired of being called “racist RethugliKKKans” if they dare to question His Whine-ness.

    And that’s when it can get ugly. If they’re going to call you a racist anyway….

  32. SteveG says:

    Oh

    I renounce your renouncement… i am white so I AM renounced. Renouncing me would be redundant

  33. I’d like to announce/my one drop counts/if my polls get a bounce

  34. Big Bang Hunter (pumping you up) says:

    – We are all hereby Uber denounced, so that takes care of any left overs or sneaky white guys that slipped through the net!

  35. Democrats In Their Own Words…

    Covering up the Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac Scam that caused our Economic Crisis

    Still think the financial mess is the fault of republicans?
    Via Naked Emperor News
    Read also:
    Congressional Democrats: Ain’t nothing wrong with Frannie and Freddie
    Throw T…..

  36. Victor. says:

    Comment by Pablo

    Bush neds to be calling these fuckers out, by name and referencing the quotes and votes.

    Is anyone interested in the truth anymore? Is reality dead?,

    Ha!

    Bush is a globalist to his core. No way he lets Goldman Sachs go down without a vote. This is why the Dems think they can get away with the ACORN slush fund. I promise you that fund will remain there in some form.

    What Paulson is asking for here is the authority to pick winners and losers, because 700(b) isn’t enough to turn back the clock and make these instruments of structured finance viable again. All he can do is get the money to the “f.o.b.” before the whole shit house gets set on fire.

  37. […] get some truth here about Fannie/Freddie From Protein Wisdom, via SeanM. at […]

  38. Sdferr says:

    Friends of Blankfein? :-)

  39. Victor. says:

    lol. something like that for sure, Sdferr.

    But all this does raise a serious question:

    In the face of some 200 trillion dollars set to move either out of the US or against the US on monday morning, what the fuck is 700(b) going to do anyway?

    This is a credit issue. The 700(b) will be worth more after the collapse, so why are we rushing this?

  40. Big Bang Hunter (pumping you up) says:

    “so why are we rushing this?”

    – Short answer: The Dems are in a panic, because they see their whole nannystate platform falling apart.

  41. Mr B says:

    “The chickens have finally come home to roost”

    The Diversity Recession

  42. happyfeet says:

    Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the majority leader, said: “We hope sometime [Sun] evening we can announce some kind of agreement in principle. We may not have another day.”

    That’s not something someone intent upon a deal would say.

  43. Big Bang Hunter (pumping you up) says:

    – Actually I hope he’s right about running out of time. I don’t think he’s saying out loud what the really means.

    – It would be a triumph of poetic justice, after all these years of watching the slow creep toward Socialism, to get to see the “compassionate society” crash and burn in a glorious train wreck.

  44. MC says:

    I’m on the ‘throw the bums out’ bandwagon – they serve at the consent of the governed. It’s time to withdraw consent.

  45. mojo says:

    Sounds like he’s starting to believe his own bullshit.

  46. Victor. says:

    Somewhere in Maryland, Jack Abramoff is crying again.

  47. Pablo says:

    This is why the Dems think they can get away with the ACORN slush fund. I promise you that fund will remain there in some form.

    Looks like that’s out..

    Democrats also made a number of concessions, abandoning demands that bankruptcy judges be empowered to modify home mortgages on primary residences for people in foreclosure. They also agreed not to dedicate a portion of any profits from the bailout program to an affordable housing fund that Republicans claimed would primarily assist social service organizations that support the Democratic Party, the official said.

    Kudos to Boehner and the House GOP.

    Whatever else Bush might be, he’s a Republican with the ultimate bully pulpit. This can and should be hung squarely around the necks of the Demorat leadership and once a deal is done, he damned well ought to be doing it. This lie that this is a problem created by deregulation, being spouted by Democrats up and down the line, must not be allowed to stand. For Christ’s sake, Dubya, get out there and defend yourself. And bring this video with you.

  48. […] make it viral. [h/t Jeff] Posted by Dan Collins @ 12:05 pm | Trackback Share […]

  49. alppuccino says:

    I’m late to the discussion. I’ve been busy with this new adult education class Victimology 101: How to become a victim and stay a victim.

    I’m learning a lot and it will be very useful when the poop hits the turbine.

    Oops, gotta go. Sniper class starts in 5.

  50. happyfeet says:

    That WaPo article Pablo linked is way better put together than the dismal effort the WSJ has up right now what Drudge is linking. Noted.

  51. happyfeet says:

    dismal effort the WSJ has up right now what Drudge is linking

  52. happyfeet says:

    reading comprehension quiz for WSJ subscribers:

    From what sandwich shop were Nancy Pelosi’s sandwiches delivered? How does this choice of catering affect the reader’s understanding of the crisis? How does it make you feel?

  53. danial dopinski says:

    Yeah, yeah, keep repeating the Fox/Republican propaganda garbage…now if Democrats caused all this mess….how come the whole bailout would cost so much more than all the so-called subprime mortgages that Fannie Mae supposedly caused? BS Republican argument. True, some rightwing Democrats like Larry Summers were a major cause of the whole deregulation problem…but trying to blame it on “people of color” whole were ‘forcing’ mortgage companies to sell them houses they couldn’t afford is a very long stretch. And typical racist garbage.

    Let’s see. How about trying a little reality about Wall Street’s unregulated “leverage” (ala 1920s Wall Street) that Chris Cox now admits became part of the ‘culture’ of “finacialization” that Reagan/Bush/Cheney/McShrimp all encouraged? Again, thanks for keeping the racist mime going…..like at Fox News.

    Yupp, thor’s won this argument handsdown.

  54. Rob Crawford says:

    So, Danial, what’s it like not being able to think for yourself?

  55. B Moe says:

    Larry Summers?

  56. Cave Bear says:

    Clearly, “Danial” is not just a river in Egypt.

  57. lee says:

    Let’s see. How about trying a little reality about Wall Street’s unregulated “leverage” (ala 1920s Wall Street) that Chris Cox now admits became part of the ‘culture’ of “finacialization” that Reagan/Bush/Cheney/McShrimp all encouraged? Again, thanks for keeping the racist mime going…..

    It would be racist if the minorities were blamed. They aren’t.

    Democrats, playing the racist card by citing discrimination as reason to lower home loan income qualifications, are the cause of so many defaults. I think anyone, regardless of race, that signed a $250,000 loan for a house they couldn’t make the payments on long term was foolish, especially the idiots that jumped in the “flipping” game.

    I think certain key democrats that took money from the offending institutions to kill the ’03 and ’05 republican efforts to get fiscal control over the institutions (which, interestingly, involved more regulation) are crooks of the order that would stun Tricky Dick Nixon.

    Oh, and it is you danial that is the racist. Do you think minorities are so deficient they require such special consideration that basic math and economic laws be deemed irrelevant?

    You should have more faith in your fellow Americans.

  58. Pablo says:

    Even Chris Dodd says this was all caused by subprime mortgages, though he doesn’t connect the dots to Fannie, Freddy and the CRA. He must be a racist too.

  59. lee says:

    Identity politics puts minorities in a box.

    Anyone that can pay for real estate can have it, regardless of race. But the dems tell them the system treats them unfairly, so the minorities distrust and disengage from the system, making it impossible for the ones swallowing the dems line to succeed.

    It’s a vicious circle, a self fulfilling prophecy, beautifully designed to keep and control a voter block.

  60. Wikistan says:

    (2004) Fannie’s doing fine, and I’m a little pissed off that you asked…

    Takeaway #1: Maxine Waters really, really, really liked Franklin Raines!

    Takeaway #2: Bill Clinton washing his hands of the situation.
    ……

  61. Rusty says:

    #54
    Look up ‘Community Reinvestment Act’ and get back to us. Mmk?

  62. […] Congressional Democrats: Ain’t nothing wrong with Frannie and Freddie […]

  63. Uivkjemd says:

    G0hDgr comment2 ,

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