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Let's get one thing straight. The government and its misguided housing policies caused our current financial mess. And, as a result, the government should help fix it.

That said, exactly "what" should have been fixed, "how" and for "how much" are the right places to focus our attention. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't make sure everyone knows exactly how we got in this mess. 

The origins lie in the Clinton Administration's misguided attempt to raise the percentage of homeowners in America by forcing banks to give loans to people with, shall we say, less than stellar credit, (those "sub-prime" mortgages you keep hearing about).

So how did they do this? With two government (read: taxpayer) sponsored companies called Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. As the Clinton Administration leaned on banks to loosen credit restrictions, (even having Janet Reno threaten lawsuits), Congress forced Fannie and Freddie to buy the sketchy loans as soon as the banks and mortgage companies wrote the loans. So the lenders made the loans (hey, why turn down a commission?), and everyone made bonus at the end of the year.  read more »

The Democrats keep repeating the mantra that the financial crisis is the fault of the Bush Administration and Republicans. When is McCain going to hit back and lay this mess at the feet of those who created it and refused to do anything to control it? Bill O'Reilly ripped into Barney Frank, head of the House Financial Services Committee, last night for blaming everyone but himself and accepting no personal responsibility for this mess.  read more »

Barack Obama is starting to make a dirty habit out of playing the race card during this presidential campaign.  read more »

Kudos go out to President Bush today as he has gone on the offensive on two of our most critical issues we face right now in America.  read more »

Now that Senator Barack Obama has wrapped up the Democratic Party's presidential nomination, it's time for him to answer some questions about where he stands on the issues that are important to the American people. Here are my questions for the senator:  read more »