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发帖数: 29846 | 1 Barney Frank continues distorting the truth on his role in the financial
crisis
By Peter J. Wallison
December 29, 2011, 11:03 am
Soon-to-be former Congressman Barney Frank continues to try to defend his
record on Fannie and Freddie by distorting, or simply reversing, the truth.
Here he is in the TheAtlantic.com today on his history as he hopes we will
remember it:
In 2004, the administration of President George W. Bush began a
conscious plan of trying to increase levels of homeownership as part of its
‘Ownership Society,’ raising affordable housing targets for Fannie and
Freddie. I opposed this policy because I thought people could end up with
mortgages they could not afford.
A pretty categorical statement, right? Replete with context that makes it
sound as though it actually happened. Unfortunately for him, there’s a
written record—a letter to President Bush, dated June 28, 2004, that he
authored for 76 colleagues, including minority leader Nancy Pelosi:
We write as members of the House of Representatives who continually
press the GSEs to do more in affordable housing. Until recently, we have
been disappointed that the administration has not been more supportive of
our efforts to press the GSEs to do more. We have been concerned that the
administration’s legislative proposal regarding the GSEs would weaken
affordable housing performance by the GSEs, by emphasizing only safety and
soundness. While the GSEs’ affordable housing mission is not in any way
incompatible with their safety and soundness, an exclusive focus on safety
and soundness is likely to come, in practice, at the expense of affordable
housing.
We have been led to conclude that the administration does not appreciate
the importance of the GSE’s affordable housing mission, as evidenced by
its refusal to work with the House and Senate on this important legislation.
It now appears that, because Congress has not been willing to jeopardize
the GSE’s mission, the administration has turned to attacking the GSEs
publicly. We are very concerned that the administration would work to foster
negative opinions in the financial markets regarding the GSEs, raising
their cost of financing. If the intent is to get prohousing members of
Congress to weaken their support of the GSEs’ mission, it is a mistaken
strategy.
Our position is not based on institutional loyalty, but on concern for
the GSE’s affordable housing function. We appeal to you to agree to work on
legislative proposals that foster sound oversight and vigorous affordable
housing efforts instead of mounting assaults in the press. We also ask you
to support our efforts to push the GSEs to do more affordable housing.
If Barney Frank has any credibility after this, it will only be with those
who—for ideological reasons—support him in his efforts to distance himself
from the government’s affordable housing requirements, which were so
destructive to Fannie and Freddie and the financial system as a whole. |
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