FINANCIAL CRISIS: Let the evidence speak for itself!

Fannie Mae Eases Credit To Aid Mortgage Lending - NYT
HT - '99 NYT Article Reveals True Cause of Current Crises | NewsBusters

News busted by NewsBusters causes sever headache at the paper of record - The New York Times; Congressional Democrats are having sympathy related stress.

Surely they knew it would all come out (after Fox traced the affair for us; includes video)? Maybe that's why the Democrats were in such a rush to go on campaign recess?

From the eight year-old Business section article ... [CRIB emphasis]

In a move that could help increase home ownership rates among minorities and low-income consumers, the Fannie Mae Corporation is easing the credit requirements on loans that it will purchase from banks and other lenders.

Then there is this ...

The action ... will encourage ... banks to extend home mortgages to individuals whose credit is generally not good enough to qualify for conventional loans.

Perhaps that is why they are called conventional loans; perhaps instead of calling them subprime, they should have been called subconventional?

Fannie Mae, the nation's biggest underwriter of home mortgages, has been under increasing pressure from the Clinton Administration to expand mortgage loans among low and moderate income people ....

That's a good idea looking for a crisis!

In addition, banks, thrift institutions and mortgage companies have been pressing Fannie Mae to help them make more loans to so-called subprime borrowers. These borrowers whose incomes, credit ratings and savings are not good enough to qualify for conventional loans ....

As a friend said, "Pressure is what pressure is!"

''Fannie Mae has expanded home ownership for millions of families in the 1990's by reducing down payment requirements,'' said Franklin D. Raines, Fannie Mae's chairman and chief executive officer. ''Yet there remain too many borrowers whose credit is just a notch below what our underwriting has required who have been relegated to paying significantly higher mortgage rates in the so-called subprime market.''

More pressure from the guy who walked away with $90 million!

And the author of the article warned ...

In moving, even tentatively, into this new area of lending, Fannie Mae is taking on significantly more risk, which may not pose any difficulties during flush economic times. But the government-subsidized corporation may run into trouble in an economic downturn, prompting a government rescue similar to that of the savings and loan industry in the 1980's.

And a expert in the field gave this prophetic and dire warning!

''From the perspective of many people, including me, this is another thrift industry growing up around us,'' said Peter Wallison a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. ''If they fail, the government will have to step up and bail them out the way it stepped up and bailed out the thrift industry.''

Wow! But you know what? Slick Willie and the Democratic choir will skate on this too! Why? Because, I predict, mainstream media won't go after it!

They would rather see the country fail than see their leftist friends have to admit fault! Which is the greater sin: greed or standing by and watching your neighbor or brother suffer when you have the ability to help him?

Bailout, Election 2008, Financial Crisis,
Fannie Mae, McCain, Obama, Politics