Legal Commentary

Political Muscle And HAMP

By Big Tent Democrat

Kevin Drum writes:

An effective regime for foreclosure relief would have done wonders for economic recovery, but it would have hurt the interests of the financial sector, which fought furiously to kill it in early 2009. And they won. Not because they were right, but because they had the raw muscle to get their way and middle-class homeowners didn't. That was good for banks, not so good for the rest of us.

This is entirely too kind to President Obama and the corrupt and incompetent Tim Geithner. Indeed, in the link Drum provides, he quotes Atrios writing:

They failed to actively support judicial bankruptcy for primary residence first mortgages (aka cramdown) and they totally screwed up HAMP. The latter was entirely under their control and the former would have stood some chance of passing if the White House had thrown its weight behind it. It didn't.

In his post today, Drum says:

An effective regime for foreclosure relief would have done wonders for economic recovery[.]

And the President and his corrupt and incompetent Treasury Secretary blew it. How can this failure not be remarked upon? How can Geithner not only keep his job but actually increase his power?

When the Bush Administration rewarded failures like Geithner's, Dem blogs would ridicule this "failing up" phenomena. Now it is only an issue of "political muscle." Ridiculous.

Speaking for me only

Full post as published by TalkLeft on January 19, 2011 (boomark / email).