Things That You Might Need To Know

[billroper]

According to CBS newsman Bob Schieffer, McCain is going to Washington DC to try to get Republicans on board to a solution for the subprime mortgage debacle at the request of the Secretary of the Treasury.

As we dig into the background a bit further, we find that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid told McCain yesterday -- after McCain said that he and Obama should get back to Washington and help sort this out -- that McCain should stay away.

Of course, the day before that Reid said that McCain needed to take a position on the bailout and that McCain was supporting it.

To which McCain responded, "I did not say that."

Now, maybe I'm a bit prejudiced about this and maybe I'm a bit cynical about this, but it looks to me like the Democratic objective here was to hang this bailout on McCain without Obama having to take a position either pro or con, thus allowing Obama to campaign against it as "McCain's bailout plan" after the dust settles. McCain, being somewhat smarter than a load of rocks, isn't falling for that particular trick. If this is supposed to be a bi-partisan bailout plan -- and the Democrats have said that they won't pass it without some sufficient number of Republican votes -- then either both candidates are going to have to publicly sign on to it or neither one has to sign on to it.

So, yes, McCain is doing a bit of posturing, but it's absolutely necessary posturing, because Obama has to either be on the same hook that the Democratic Congressional leadership wants to put McCain on or explain to the folks negotiating the bailout plan what his better idea is for solving the problem.

And trust me. If Obama's got a better idea, Congress will be all over it.

Comments

[billroper]

If you believe that this is strictly a Republican mess, then you've failed to look into any of the history of the problem. If Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae -- under prodding from Democrats such as Barney Frank -- had not been willing to buy the subprime mortgages from their originators, there would have been many fewer subprime mortgages out there. That's one of the reasons, for instance, that jumbo mortgages are expensive -- because Freddie and Fannie won't buy them.

There's plenty of blame to go around. To their credit, the Bush Administration wanted improved oversight of Freddie and Fannie back in 2003, but couldn't get it through Congress.

[rmeidaking.livejournal.com]

"To their credit, the Bush Administration wanted improved oversight of Freddie and Fannie back in 2003, but couldn't get it through Congress."

Make sure you remember that that was a Republican-majority Congress that wouldn't approved improved oversight.

This is a Republican mess, from start to finish.

The record from the candidates this Congress:

[jrittenhouse.livejournal.com]

From The Hill (http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/mccain-has-introduced-no-banking-bill-this-congress-2008-09-25.html), today:

McCain has not sponsored a banking bill this Congress
By Bob Cusack
Posted: 09/25/08 12:26 PM [ET]
Republican presidential nominee John McCain has not introduced any banking or housing bills in the 110th Congress, while Democratic rival Barack Obama has proposed five.

Both candidates are traveling to Washington on Thursday to meet with President Bush and congressional leaders to build support for a massive rescue plan for the nation’s ailing economy.

Neither Sen. McCain (Ariz.) nor Sen. Obama (Ill.) sits on the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, which is taking the lead in the upper chamber of molding the bailout plan.

McCain is the lead sponsor of 38 pieces of legislation during the 110th Congress, none of which have been referred to the Banking panel, according to a review of Thomas, a congressional website.

Obama has introduced 130 measures during this Congress. Five of Obama’s standalone bills fall within the Banking Committee's jurisdiction.

Obama’s legislation calls for bolstering housing assistance for veterans, amending the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 to provide shareholders with an advisory vote on executive compensation, halting mortgage transactions that promote fraud, authorizing local and state governments to crack down on companies that invest in Iran's energy sector and authorizing a pilot program to prevent at-risk veterans from becoming homeless.

[jrittenhouse.livejournal.com]

Bill...show me a specific bill. I saw the NYT article on Bush's comments from 2003, and I've analyzed the House/Senate thrash over Hagel's (http://jrittenhouse.livejournal.com/1047010.html) reform bills of 2005 and 2007 - the first one of which McCain supported a year after it was introduced and after it was dead in the water.

But I have not seen a Bush 2003 bill on this matter. I can wish for all sorts of things, but only bills introduced in the Congress can become law.