"Words that make actions speak louder."
A lot of frequently credible publications have been pumping out drivel lately blaming borrowers for the ever-widening foreclosure fraud scandal. Fortune Magazine has the latest of these blame-the-borrower narratives. It would be nice to be able to dismiss this kind of nonsense as mere journalistic laziness, but at this point in the crisis, blaming the […]
Chris Hayes from The Nation talked to me for his excellent weekly podcast, The Breakdown. We’re talking about foreclosure fraud, mortgage-backed securities fraud, illegal mortgage fees, and all kinds of really nasty things happening on Wall Street. Give it a listen: It looks like you don’t have Adobe Flash Player installed. Get it now. Original […]
If senior White House adviser David Axelrod’s comments this weekend are any indication, the Obama administration is woefully misreading the foreclosure fraud crisis currently gripping the U.S. economy. Axelrod refused to commit the administration to a national moratorium on foreclosures, and mischaracterized a massive, systematic fraud perpetrated by Wall Street banks as a set of […]
There are plenty of reasons why the foreclosure fraud crisis sweeping the nation’s housing market is an economic disaster. Banks are charging borrowers illegal fees, kicking the wrong people out of their homes and even hiring thugs to illegally break into houses. But the fundamental scam is much worse than these shameful acts. Fraud in […]
Anybody looking for a primer explaining why the current foreclosure fraud issue is a major systemic risk for the financial system should check out Mike Konczal’s new post for the Roosevelt Institute. I’m going to try and simplify it even further here, and present the only serious avenue available to solve the problem. Three parties […]
I attended two big economic gatherings this week, one on financial reform organized by finance blogger Mike Konczal for The Roosevelt Institute, another on the economic outlook, presented by the American Enterprise Institute. Each event was depressing in its own right, but combined, they spell out very big trouble for the U.S. economy. Things are […]
I’ll have plenty to say about the escalating foreclosure fraud scandal later this week. For now: This is a big, big deal. It isn’t a clerical error, it’s an aggressive attempt to slap borrowers with thousands of dollars in illegal fees for the luxury of being foreclosed on. And what’s more, this absurd, shady business […]
UPDATE: President Obama vetoed the foreclosure fraud bailout this afternoon, but plenty of other battles are already raging. Rep. Alan Grayson, D-Fla., is calling for Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and the newly-established Financial Stability Oversight Council to investigate the foreclosure fraud scandal as a systemic risk to the U.S. economy. That’s a major step. Thus […]
Just when you thought Wall Street couldn’t defraud the economy any further, it went ahead and did it. After pushing millions of borrowers into foreclosure with fraudulent loans, big banks are now being implicated in a massive new fraud scandal involving the foreclosure process itself. All over the country, banks and their lawyers are resorting […]
Editor’s Note: We’re publishing a series of “Making Sense” fact sheets on key economic issues to help you win the debate on the core issues facing middle-class families. Each fact sheet contains information, talking points and resources you can use to make the case for progressive policies. Today: Curbing Wall Street. Tomorrow: Social Security. The […]