Political Quotes

“I come to speak against the proposal by Senator Bond which would significantly--in fact, catastrophically-- undercut the affordable housing program we have included in this legislation, with the support of Chairman Dodd and Ranking Member Shelby. This legislation is necessary. Even before we had a foreclosure crisis, hundreds of thousands of Americans--millions--did not have decent, affordable housing. So this is not something that is a temporary fix to the mortgage crisis; this is long-term solution aimed at addressing a long-term problem of not having enough affordable housing in this country. It is absolutely necessary. The Bond amendment would essentially say: Well, yes, you can have a housing trust fund, but we are not going to fund it because the funding mechanism comes from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Oh, by the way, you can create a home ownership protection program, but the first 3 years of affordable housing trust fund monies won't be available to help pay for it, which was how we dealt with the objection of Senator Shelby and many others that we not use public funds to help with the foreclosure problem. This is a way in which we can accommodate many objectives: helping people facing foreclosure without using public funds and in the long term creating a permanent, affordable housing trust fund.”