Come on, Maxine

By Chip Hanlon | October 01, 2008 | 1:19 PM | 2 Comments

The big problem I have with the looming bailout bill is that nobody in Washington is accurately identifying the culprit: Washington. And now we're supposed to trust them with the cure?

Here's another great example, CA Congresswoman Maxine Waters, speaking in support of H.R. 3221 in July, the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (another one of the many "solutions" to our credit crisis D.C. has implemented in the last year). WIthout a doubt, the most classic line she utters appears just 30 seconds into this 3-1/2 minute clip,  "I want to thank the Black Caucus for standing strong and insisting that we have money to help those communities that were targeted by the lenders for this subprime mess that they put us in."

Excuse me?  Actually, your party's pressure on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to enter subprime for the first time in 1999 is what brought these loans so fully to your district, Congresswoman.  Just watch this nonsense:

Her comments near the end about the need for more assistance for low-income homebuyers are also priceless. She even laments how low-income buyers "are left with little choice but to turn to the sub-prime market." What, does she think lenders should just have to lend to all borrowers as though they represent the same credit risk?

Actually, I bet she does. Yeah, let's trust these characters to draft a cure.

The reason to oppose any bailout is that the long-term cost will unquestionably outweight any short-term benefits. Don't think so? Watch that video and ask yourself if you really think ninnies like this have any clue what they're actually doing.