Bankruptcy

What are Democrat Candidates Saying About the 2005 Bankruptcy Law?

By J. Michael McBride

When asked during Tuesday's night debate in Las Vegas about the 2005 Bankruptcy law, the candidates had the following comments:

Edwards: When asked if he regretted voting for the 2001 bankruptcy bill which later became law in 2005 that made it more difficult for the middle-class, particularly woman, to file for bankruptcy Mr. Edwards responded, "I absolutely do. I should not have voted for that bankruptcy law". Mr. Edwards went on to say that half of the bankruptcies filed today are a result of medical costs and the fact that a single mother who is overwhelmed with medical bills cannot be relieved of the debt when filing bankruptcy is "not fair, and it's not right".

Clinton: Mrs. Clinton responded when asked if she regretted initially voting for the same 2001 bill by saying, "Sure, I do. And I opposed the 2005 bill as well". Clinton later reversed her vote on the 2001 bill, which the Consumer Federation of America said "was the death knell for the opponents of the bill". Clinton went on to echo Edwards' comments about universal health care and college affordability and added "reform the bankruptcy law right now going forward so that people who are caught in these subprime and now increasingly conventional loans that they can't pay ... will have the option of getting relieved of this debt."

Obama: Mr. Obama started out by saying, "I opposed them both." He went on to say, "we have to release people who are in bankruptcy as a consequence of health care. We've got to give them a break". He stated that both bills were pushed by special interest lobbies in Washington from the credit card and mortgage companies and that it was "typical".

The entire transcript is located at: http://www.abiworld.org/pdfs/Democratdebatetranscriptonbankruptcy1-15-08.pdf

Chandra

Full post as published by Texas Lawyer Blog on January 18, 2008 (boomark / email).