Political Quotes

“I thank the gentleman for yielding. I rise in opposition to H.R. 836. This is one of four anti- foreclosure programs that the majority is voting to terminate. This particular program they want to terminate today is designed to assist homeowners who have experienced a significant reduction in income or are at risk of foreclosure due to loss of a job, involuntary unemployment, underemployment, or a medical condition. This is a group that needs our help. There are 1.2 million households with a mortgage where a head of household or spouse is unemployed. And in my home State of New York, where Mr. Grimm--I wish I had the opportunity to ask him, was he aware that 142,000 households in our home State have a mortgage with a person who is the head of the household or spouse is unemployed. And this program potentially could have helped those people. The majority leader who spoke earlier, in his home State, the great State of Virginia, there are over 59,000 households that have a mortgage in which someone in the family is underemployed or unemployed. And in the great State of Texas, the largest number of households with a mortgage and a spouse or head of household who is unemployed, there are over 172,000 families in this terrible situation. Families across the country would benefit from the program. But instead, they are cutting it. The program fulfills an important gap because it addresses a temporary loss of income and helps homeowners when they are most vulnerable.…”