We must maintain that leverage going forward.

I rise today to discuss the nomination of Representative Watt to lead the Federal Housing Finance Agency, or FHFA. Unfortunately, I cannot support this nomination, and I must urge my colleagues not to support it either. I did not come to…

I remain strongly committed to working with the Chairman and all of my colleagues toward a bipartisan solution in the near future.

If there is not proper underwriting and allocation of private capital ahead of the Government guarantee, we could find ourselves in another taxpayer bailout scenario. That would be unacceptable.

The status quo means little, if any, reduction in the $5 trillion of outstanding mortgage debt to which the taxpayer is currently exposed.

The status quo means Government control of nearly all of our Nation's mortgage-backed securities market, stifling financial innovation.

These realities prove that inaction carries its own dangers in our housing market, as does action that merely gives the appearance of change without recognizing the mistakes of the past.

The issue of how we transition into a future system is one of the most important topics we will cover in this series of housing finance reform hearings.

We cannot afford to return to the days of weak regulatory oversight of the secondary mortgage market.

We must learn from these mistakes.

I join my colleagues on the floor today because, like many of them, my constituents are upset. Idahoans are finding out that America's promise to the American people that ``if you liked your health care plan you could keep it'' simply was…

I rise today, also, to speak about a subject on the minds of all Americans and that is the rollout of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act or ObamaCare. Many of us have predicted the implementation of ObamaCare would result in…

before I make my remarks, I ask unanimous consent that Senator Reed from Rhode Island be recognized immediately following my remarks. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

As we address this important issue, we must not return to the flawed politics of the past.

The President promised, we can cut the average family's premium by about $2,500 a year.

The law is not working as it was promised.

The President said, if you like your plan, you can keep it.

The President promised, if you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor.

The President promised, if your family makes or earns less than $250,000 a year, you will not see your taxes increased a single dime.

This issue is important since small lenders represent the lifeblood of many communities across America, and especially rural communities in Idaho and elsewhere.

If Congress passes housing finance reform without getting small lender access right, it will be the homebuyers in rural and underserved areas who pay the price for that mistake.

The explicit guarantee will provide certainty to the market, especially for investors who will need to be enticed to invest in the MBS.

the Government's model, make sure that all voices are heard and everybody has a voice.

we must ensure that the taxpayer is standing only behind mortgages that meet strong underwriting standards.

we must ensure that there is adequate private capital taking the first loss at the security level if we are to avoid the future taxpayer losses.