The Near Total Corruption of the USA

We've all been at the party. Now we're crashing on the drive home.....
Most details about the Fannie and Freddy el foldo are in the WaPo on Sunday. Read about Congress fucking this up, important only in that the whore house that is Congress is holding hearings this week in order to divert blame to the Bush Administration. Clinton Administration went to Congress in March of 2000 and warned of this entire debacle. Make no mistake, this entire "problem" is the result of Congress making Fannie and Freddy the conduit for entitlements. Lending to minorities, women, poor people, and so on; loans that were virtually guaranteed to fail, were literally ordered by Congress.

Last weekend, the federal government seized control of the two companies to protect the very mortgage market they were created to lubricate. The cost to taxpayers could run into the tens of billions of dollars.

So Barney Frank one of the key enablers of this bribe machine spoke on the floor of Congress way back in 1992

On the other side stood Barney Frank, a Massachusetts Democrat who said the companies served a public purpose. They were in the business of lowering the price of mortgage loans. Another great piece here says

These are outstanding pieces and clearly shows how most top Washington people in both parties had warned Congress repeatedly and all they did was take bribes and increase their size.

In October 1992, a brief debate unfolded on the floor of the House of Representatives over a bill to create a new regulator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. On one side stood Jim Leach, an Iowa Republican concerned that Congress was "hamstringing" this new regulator at the behest of the companies.

He warned that the two companies were changing "from being agencies of the public at large to money machines for the stockholding few."

On the other side stood Barney Frank, a Massachusetts Democrat who said the companies served a public purpose. They were in the business of lowering the price of mortgage loans.

Congress chose to create a weak regulator, the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight. The agency was required to get its budget approved by Congress, while agencies that regulated banks set their own budgets. That gave congressional allies an easy way to exert pressure.

Further, keep in mind that Angelo Mozilo, chairman of Countrywide wanted the complete elimination of any down payment.
Our real problem in this crises is the near total corruption of our political processes.

Late Add: Jamie Gorelik, the one who was involved deeply in the 9-11 hearings that accused her of building the Chinese Wall between agencies that prevented any actions at all, is also at the center of serious accusations of bribery within the agencies. (Hat tip:Reynolds)