Barack was on the stump yesterday in Colorado, reading from the teleprompter words prepared by a campaign speech writer. The speech went well, sounded fine, but was a contradiction unto itself. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were one of the topics. These are the government backed mortgage companies that gorged themselves on for a decade on the hard earned money of the lower and middle class of America. Democrats pitched in by trying to create social change in their voting districts by encouraging families to grab the American dream. This meant taking on mortgages they couldn't afford on houses that were not worth what they paid for them. Simple supply side economics. House flippers noticed that more folks were able to buy houses, greater demand, so the prices went up, to balance that supply side. Fannie and Freddie kept qualifying people for the loans and then selling them to investors in bundles. The bubble grew bigger. So, where does Barack Obama and the democrats come in again? The next two paragraphs are from Obama's speech yesterday:
OBAMA: Over the last few days, we have seen clearly what's at stake in this election. The news from Wall Street has shaken the American people's faith in our economy. The situation with Lehman Brothers and other financial institutions is the latest in a wave of crises that have generated tremendous uncertainty about the future of our financial markets. This is a major threat to our economy and its ability to create good-paying jobs and help working Americans pay their bills, save for their future, and make their mortgage payments.
Since this turmoil began over a year ago, the housing market has collapsed. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac had to be effectively taken over by the government. Three of America's five largest investment banks failed or have been sold off in distress. Yesterday, Wall Street suffered its worst losses since just after 9/11. We are in the most serious financial crisis in generations.
Now let's follow the dollars.
Top Recipients of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Campaign Contributions, 1989-2008 1) Chris Dodd $133,900 2) John Kerry $111,000 3) Barack Obama $105,849 4) Hillary Clinton $75,550
Barack is listed number 3 on the list and the dates here are from 1989 to 2008. He has only been in the Senate for 3 years. That is a lot of money in a short time. Oh, but the contradictions continue. How can you take money from a group with one hand and point your finger at them with the other?
