Political Quotes

“I rise to support the LaFalce motion to instruct the conferees on H.R. 10. It is important to support and protect the House version of the Community Reinvestment Act sections of H.R. 10. Although the House version, for me, is weak on ensuring that these provisions are extended to other financial institutions now with this enormous extension of the powers of banking, at least the House version ensures that the Community Reinvestment Act conditions apply to banking. The Senate version does not. We must remember the CRA was passed as a creative response to blatant ethnic gender and neighborhood discrimination in the lending of money for housing. A red line would be drawn around a neighborhood that a bank or an insurance company perceived to have a majority of people with risky credit. The bank or the insurance company would then not lend to anyone within those red lines. Unfortunately, this discriminatory behavior exists today. The Community Reinvestment Act, however, encourages banks that do business in communities to reinvest in those communities. It is a positive way to encourage banks to do the correct thing, to not discriminate. I urge an 'aye' vote on the LaFalce motion to instruct.”