SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Alongside Housing Activists, Warren Blasts HUD's Collusion with Wall Street
"We need to get something straight: These federal agencies don't work for Wall Street. They work for the American people."
Oct 01, 2015
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) on Wednesday took part in a Washington, D.C. rally to urge the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to quit selling home loans to hedge funds and private financial firms.
Warren joined Rep. Michael Capuano (D-Mass.) and a group of community activists at the Lutheran Church of the Reformation on Capitol Hill to protest predatory lending schemes that allow financiers to foreclose on struggling borrowers without first modifying loan terms. Warren blasted HUD and the FHFA for their role in the crisis and called on the government to make it easier for nonprofit housing groups to buy distressed mortgages at auction.
"HUD and FHFA have been lining up with the Wall Street speculators," Warren said in a speech before the march. "This should surprise absolutely nobody.... Wall Street is interested in profits, not in working out a way for people to stay in their homes."
"These Wall Street investors made money by crashing the economy, got bailed out and now they're back to feed at the trough again, scooping up these loans at rock-bottom prices so that they profit off them a second time--and it is up to us to stop that!" Warren said to a cheering crowd.
"We need to get something straight: These federal agencies don't work for Wall Street. They work for the American people," she continued. "HUD and FHFA could make these changes right now if they just had the courage to stand up for families instead of bowing to Wall Street."
Following Warren's speech, the activists--many dressed in orange T-shirts that read, "Communities for Change"--marched to protest outside FHFA headquarters, where they reportedly met with agency chief Mel Watt and HUD officials.
Speaking to Warren's credibility on Capitol Hill, Dana Milbank, a Washington Post columnist who attended the rally, writes:
Given Warren's record, Watt has reason for concern. After my Post colleagues Tom Hamburger, James Hohmann and Elise Viebeck reported Tuesday on letters Warren sent to Brookings [Institution] protesting research by Robert Litan that was both corporate-backed and corporate-friendly, Brookings forced Litan to resign.
According to Edward Golding, HUD's principal deputy assistant secretary, the meeting between activists and HUD officials included discussions over how federal agencies could "make better use of one of its tools, the Distressed Asset Stabilization Program (DASP), to further the Department's goal of stabilizing communities and assisting them as they, and their public-minded partners, work to address severely distressed mortgages that are on the verge of foreclosure."
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Nadia Prupis
Nadia Prupis is a former Common Dreams staff writer. She wrote on media policy for Truthout.org and has been published in New America Media and AlterNet. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a BA in English in 2008.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) on Wednesday took part in a Washington, D.C. rally to urge the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to quit selling home loans to hedge funds and private financial firms.
Warren joined Rep. Michael Capuano (D-Mass.) and a group of community activists at the Lutheran Church of the Reformation on Capitol Hill to protest predatory lending schemes that allow financiers to foreclose on struggling borrowers without first modifying loan terms. Warren blasted HUD and the FHFA for their role in the crisis and called on the government to make it easier for nonprofit housing groups to buy distressed mortgages at auction.
"HUD and FHFA have been lining up with the Wall Street speculators," Warren said in a speech before the march. "This should surprise absolutely nobody.... Wall Street is interested in profits, not in working out a way for people to stay in their homes."
"These Wall Street investors made money by crashing the economy, got bailed out and now they're back to feed at the trough again, scooping up these loans at rock-bottom prices so that they profit off them a second time--and it is up to us to stop that!" Warren said to a cheering crowd.
"We need to get something straight: These federal agencies don't work for Wall Street. They work for the American people," she continued. "HUD and FHFA could make these changes right now if they just had the courage to stand up for families instead of bowing to Wall Street."
Following Warren's speech, the activists--many dressed in orange T-shirts that read, "Communities for Change"--marched to protest outside FHFA headquarters, where they reportedly met with agency chief Mel Watt and HUD officials.
Speaking to Warren's credibility on Capitol Hill, Dana Milbank, a Washington Post columnist who attended the rally, writes:
Given Warren's record, Watt has reason for concern. After my Post colleagues Tom Hamburger, James Hohmann and Elise Viebeck reported Tuesday on letters Warren sent to Brookings [Institution] protesting research by Robert Litan that was both corporate-backed and corporate-friendly, Brookings forced Litan to resign.
According to Edward Golding, HUD's principal deputy assistant secretary, the meeting between activists and HUD officials included discussions over how federal agencies could "make better use of one of its tools, the Distressed Asset Stabilization Program (DASP), to further the Department's goal of stabilizing communities and assisting them as they, and their public-minded partners, work to address severely distressed mortgages that are on the verge of foreclosure."
Nadia Prupis
Nadia Prupis is a former Common Dreams staff writer. She wrote on media policy for Truthout.org and has been published in New America Media and AlterNet. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a BA in English in 2008.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) on Wednesday took part in a Washington, D.C. rally to urge the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to quit selling home loans to hedge funds and private financial firms.
Warren joined Rep. Michael Capuano (D-Mass.) and a group of community activists at the Lutheran Church of the Reformation on Capitol Hill to protest predatory lending schemes that allow financiers to foreclose on struggling borrowers without first modifying loan terms. Warren blasted HUD and the FHFA for their role in the crisis and called on the government to make it easier for nonprofit housing groups to buy distressed mortgages at auction.
"HUD and FHFA have been lining up with the Wall Street speculators," Warren said in a speech before the march. "This should surprise absolutely nobody.... Wall Street is interested in profits, not in working out a way for people to stay in their homes."
"These Wall Street investors made money by crashing the economy, got bailed out and now they're back to feed at the trough again, scooping up these loans at rock-bottom prices so that they profit off them a second time--and it is up to us to stop that!" Warren said to a cheering crowd.
"We need to get something straight: These federal agencies don't work for Wall Street. They work for the American people," she continued. "HUD and FHFA could make these changes right now if they just had the courage to stand up for families instead of bowing to Wall Street."
Following Warren's speech, the activists--many dressed in orange T-shirts that read, "Communities for Change"--marched to protest outside FHFA headquarters, where they reportedly met with agency chief Mel Watt and HUD officials.
Speaking to Warren's credibility on Capitol Hill, Dana Milbank, a Washington Post columnist who attended the rally, writes:
Given Warren's record, Watt has reason for concern. After my Post colleagues Tom Hamburger, James Hohmann and Elise Viebeck reported Tuesday on letters Warren sent to Brookings [Institution] protesting research by Robert Litan that was both corporate-backed and corporate-friendly, Brookings forced Litan to resign.
According to Edward Golding, HUD's principal deputy assistant secretary, the meeting between activists and HUD officials included discussions over how federal agencies could "make better use of one of its tools, the Distressed Asset Stabilization Program (DASP), to further the Department's goal of stabilizing communities and assisting them as they, and their public-minded partners, work to address severely distressed mortgages that are on the verge of foreclosure."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good.
News & Opinion
Trending
Common Dreams, Inc. Founded 1997. Registered 501(c3) Non-Profit
Privacy Policy