Why is Christopher Dodd Still the Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee?
And Why Are Republicans Still Known As the Party of Corruption?
By blackhedd Posted in Breaking News | Christopher Dodd | Corrupt Democrat Watch | Countrywide Financial | curruption — Comments (28) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
You’ve seen the fine reporting done by my RedState colleagues on the Jim Johnson story (Here’s Moe’s take.)
Jim Johnson is the past CEO of Fannie Mae. You know, the government-sponsored entity that buys up a huge chunk of all the home mortgages originated in this country.
Being an accomplished business executive is a fine credential to be a member of Barack Obama’s Vice-Presidential vetting committee. But it’s a bummer that Johnson has accepted low-rate loans from Countrywide Financial that are available only to friends and associates of embattled Countrywide former CEO Angelo Mozilo, as the Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week.
Obama isn’t the kind of guy to tolerate conflicts of interest among people who work for him. Therefore, he immediately denied that Johnson actually does work for him. (Johnson was running Obama’s VP-candidate vetting process, but he wasn’t actually working for Obama. I think that means that Johnson was planning to just send Obama an email with some recommendations at the end of the process, but I can’t be sure.)
Anyway, Obama got tired of being second-guessed on this, so he fired Johnson informed Johnson that he would no longer be not working for the Obama campaign.
Today, there’s this. It turns out that Jim Johnson wasn’t the only important guy to receive loans at rates you and I can’t touch.
There’s also Senator Christopher Dodd, Democrat of Connecticut.
Now let me tell you why you need to be mad as a plucked hen about this:
Because Senator Dodd is the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs. Along with Barney Frank, Dodd is the guy whose name will be on the landmark mortgage-bailout legislation now pending.
Haven’t I been telling you for months that bailing out homeowners who bought more house than they could afford will inevitably have the effect of bailing out mortgage lenders who had no business making those loans in the first place?
Why is Christopher Dodd accepting personal handouts from the mortgage-lending industry, while simultaneously pushing legislation to bail them out at the expense of everyone who plays by the rules?
Why is Christopher Dodd still running the Senate Banking Committee?
-Francis Cianfrocca (“blackhedd”)
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Why is Christopher Dodd Still the Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee? 28 Comments (0 topical, 28 editorial, 0 hidden) Post a comment »
Is the mortgage bailout still pending? It hasn't been in the news much the last couple of weeks and I was hoping it had died an anonymous death. Hopefully this will tank Dodd and drag the bill down with him.
On the same token the republicans still get to lay claim to being the party 'strong on foreign policy', 'fiscal responsibility', and 'small government', unchallenged.
Speaking as someone with the power to disable your account, I urge you to comply if you wish to keep posting here.
your indignation rings a little hollow; where was the outrage with regard to:
1. Our actual Vice President's (not a supervisor of a committee to find one) steering billions to the company he used to RUN?
2. Commerce Secretary Donald Evans, who ran a gas and oil company
3. Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill, who ran Alcoa
At least Obama fired him, your strikethrough notwithstanding.
Pointing to another perceived bad behavior does not justify a known bad behavior.
"Land of the Free and Home of da Whopper" Peter Griffin...Family Guy
conform and celebrate diversity....or else!!!
The Fuzzy Puppy of the VRWC. I've been usurped!
him because ummm uhhh umm he was not a paid employee and ummm, uhhh do you not even listen to your lord and saviour?
Freedom of Religion NOT Freedom from Religion
1. Oh, Lord, not Haliburton, again?? Really? Ok, once and for all, please name one other company that actually had the equipment, manpower, experience, and financial strength to do the work that Haliburton did in Iraq. Haliburton got the contract without a long bidding process because a bid process would have simply been going through the motions at that point, and time was important. Unfortunately, it also gave the pillow-biters something to carp about for the next six years.
2. So what? Last time I checked, there's nothing illegal about having experience in the gas and oil industry, but it IS illegal to take a kickback for sponsoring legislation, as it appears to be in the case of the mortgage bailout bill. Unless you have specifics about improper Commerce Department dealings with said company, pointing this out carries about as much impact as pointing out that Evans a Protestant.
3. Again, I'm not aware of any allegations that the Treasury Department made any improper payments to Alcoa under Mr. O'Neil's leadership. Or are you saying that being a CEO should automatically disqualify you from serving in the cabinet? Is that based on class envy, or is it some sort of socialist morality call?
______________________________________________
"You can't save the Earth unless you're willing to make other people sacrifice" - Scott Adams (speaking through Dogbert)
People trying to attack Cheney and Haliburton are so lost its getting comical. Glad you point out how it was either going to be Haliburton or someone like Fisher Price bidding for this contract. People also look past the fact Cheney donated all his Haliburton stock to charity. On the otherhand Hillary had Haliburton stock up until a year ago when she started her run for Pres.
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he fired the guy
Reply to This is your friend.
The Fuzzy Puppy of the VRWC. I've been usurped!
"First you win the argument, then you win the vote." - MARGARET THATCHER.
So let's start winning the argument.
Just asking, because I thought this article was about Dodd.
I actually met Dodd and some of his minions in DC. Bottom line, let's just say the game is played old style.
If you look at his top 5 contributors; my goodness it's all related to the financial industry! Shocking!
Dodd also received funds from Enron's auditor (AA) and from John Huang. So frankly, none of this is a surprise.
"Nec Aspera Terrent"
bene ambula et redambula
Contributor to The Minority Report
The interest rate on the loans, originally pegged at 4.875%, was reduced to 4.25% on the Washington home and 4.5% on the Connecticut property by the time the loans were funded.
That's low but not jaw dropping low, I wouldn't say it's an out of reach mortgage rate for people in Dodd's range. Can you actually prove Dodd accepted a kickback from Contrywide in 2003 in the form of a lowered interest rate to provide home-owner bailout legislation in 2008-9? Did Countrywide get anything out of Dodd besides threats to stop predatory lending practices, and legislation to curtail such practices? How would Countrywide, now owned by BofA, profit from home-owner bailout legislation?
Lastly, how would you, as a way more versed person in finance then I, prevent this form of favoritism in the future? one size fits all mortgage rates?
Well the problem with this argument is that you are looking only at the percentage rate given...oh well it's only.625 lower so that's not that much....look at the over all savings..that's how compound interest works...if he had a million dollar loan that difference of .652 becomes a very large saving over the course of a 30 yr mortgage. So in reality he have been receiving kick backs from Countrywide since 2003 when the loan was established.
"Land of the Free and Home of da Whopper" Peter Griffin...Family Guy
conform and celebrate diversity....or else!!!
I believe the article said that Dodd would save around $58,000 over the life of the loan because of the lower interest rate, but also that if Dodd had shopped around, he would have received similar offers from other providers. Given that the man makes $160,000 a year or so and probably has a million or two in savings and investments, how is this loan scandalous?
The article does not say that Dodd would have received similar rates. It clearly state that it was originally a higher interest and then reduced because he was a "FOA". The original rate already took into account his income/assets, so the reduced rate is purely an additional benefit for being a "FOA" because he was a US Senator. So the $58k difference is an indirect payment to Dodd.
The V.I.P. loans to public officials in a position to advance Countrywide’s interests raise legal and ethical questions. Countrywide’s ethics code bars directors, officers and employees from “improperly influencing the decisions of government employees or contractors by offering or promising to give money, gifts, loans, rewards, favors, or anything else of value.” Federal employees are prohibited from receiving gifts offered because of their official position, including loans on terms not generally available to the public. Senate rules prohibit members from knowingly receiving gifts worth $100 or more in a calendar year from private entities that, like Countrywide, employ a registered lobbyist.
"Land of the Free and Home of da Whopper" Peter Griffin...Family Guy
conform and celebrate diversity....or else!!!
But both Conrad and Dodd's wife also stated that their loans were comparable to other offers, which I think is reasonable considering their incomes and age. Conrad stated that he didn't know he was being given preferential treatment. Of course if knowledge of preferential treatment could be proven, that would be another matter.
I can see this as raising legal and ethical questions as any appearance of impropriety should, but considering Countrywide or any other mortgage-lender has never profited from Dodd being in his official position, especially on loans made 5 years ago, I doubt highly that this is anywhere even remotely similar to Cunningham and Abrimoff.
If they shopped around for this loan then they would have to have know that they were getting a better deal than the general public...and I would guess that it was due to where they worked...not their credit score. And that is enough proof for them to be investigated...you know like the Dems want to do to just about anybody with an R next to their name.
"Land of the Free and Home of da Whopper" Peter Griffin...Family Guy
conform and celebrate diversity....or else!!!
Dem Lurker: I agree, this isn't a substantive dollar-and-cents issue. I don't think the money is all that big of a deal.
However, it is an important PERCEPTION and SYMBOLIC issue, and thus should be a big deal politically for Dodd & Conrad.
There's a big mortgage and credit crisis going on. There was a lot of bad behavior by banks, investors and borrowers alike, all while the feds and regulators looked away.
The question now is this: Who should foot the bill to fix the problem?
-- Banks who made the bad loans?
-- Individuals who borrowed too much?
-- Taxpayers (who never benefited from cash out refis etc)
-- The broader mortgage market (ie, the millions of unnameable individuals who borrowed responsibly and within their means)?
If lawmakers were accepting special favors and cut-rate deals, they lose the moral authority to impose the cost of a bailout on the rest of us taxpayers. Dodd and Conrad have some 'splainin to do.
After all, as members of the Senate banking committee with important legislation in front of them, they need to show they are clean as a whistle. A few months of investigation into every aspect of their finances as well as their staff's finances aught to do it. And of course, hearings, got to have weeks and weeks of hearings... Can't wait to hear Dodd and Conrad testifying under oath. All this during the campaign.
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"Enlightened statesmen will not always be at the helm." -- James Madison
About Strom Thurmond that would be a whole different story.
"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it."
-Thomas Paine: The American Crisis, No. 4, 1777
Redstaters,
You obviously don't understand how this is played. Republican with ethical lapses is actually embarrassed when caught and shamed into resigning. Democrat caught with bribery money in freezer feels no shame and gets reelected. Democrat bribed by company has no shame about using stolen money (okay, okay, money confiscated from subjects called tax payers) to bailout said company. Amazing!
Since I have perfect credit and have never been late with a payment I called Countrywide yesterday and asked if I qualify for the special bribery rate. They switched me from supervisor to supervisor but I was unable to get Angelo Mozilla on the phone and apparently he has to approve the bribery interest rate personally. Oh well.
Why is Christopher Dodd still running the Senate Banking Committee?
We've seen it from the time the Dems took congress and the Senate, much like the Republicans did, they now feel they are untouchable, they have a Pres Candidate who seems to try and just wipe away his problems with the mindset "I don't have to answer to any of that." Just like the kick in the ass we should have gotten in 2006 over our over spending and screwing around, maybe the Dems will get that same kick in the ass this November when the US tell them to stop the lies and criminal acts and get to doing what you were voted in for, which wasn't doubling our gas price.
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