Audio: Mark Levin on the subprime crisis
posted at 3:15 pm on September 21, 2008 by Allahpundit
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Via Ace. It’s long, but we’ve had lots of requests for it and you’ve got time on a slow Sunday afternoon. What happens when a policy with good intentions is built on a foundation of bad financial sense? Ask the New York Times, which saw this coming almost 10 years ago. September 30, 1999:
In moving, even tentatively, into this new area of lending, Fannie Mae is taking on significantly more risk, which may not pose any difficulties during flush economic times. But the government-subsidized corporation may run into trouble in an economic downturn, prompting a government rescue similar to that of the savings and loan industry in the 1980’s.
”From the perspective of many people, including me, this is another thrift industry growing up around us,” said Peter Wallison a resident fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. ”If they fail, the government will have to step up and bail them out the way it stepped up and bailed out the thrift industry.”
And now here we are. Click to listen.
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Oh, this was awesome. Someone should make McCain and Palin sit down and get schooled.
Iblis on September 21, 2008 at 3:17 PM
Thanks Mark. I listened and appreciated your clarity.
To TEAM MCCAIN! Download this on Mac’s ipod and have him listen to it day and night.
The key to this mess and fixing it is ACCOUNTABILITY and TRANSPARENCY. It is also what the voters want. It is not regulation per se, nor is is Wall Street greed per se, it is deeper and more endemic than that.
Mr. Joe on September 21, 2008 at 3:18 PM
McCain, keep hammering home the point that BO took more Fannie & Freddie campaign contributions than anyone except Dodd!
jgapinoy on September 21, 2008 at 3:19 PM
Good stuff. The Anchoress had the link earlier today.
Zorro on September 21, 2008 at 3:19 PM
Sorry to ruin the fun, but an ice age cometh
KentAllard on September 21, 2008 at 3:19 PM
The battle against free market principles and government regulation has begun
Kini on September 21, 2008 at 3:20 PM
Do not trust Joe Biden. He lies. Remember him talking about his Baretta a few days ago? Well check this out: http://www.reason.com/blog/show/121563.html
Do not trust Democrats, especially Barney Frank: “Without low-down-payment mortgages, you don’t get the housing bubble. The CEO of Freddie Mac, Richard Syron, got sacked. Good. Barney Frank, Syron’s chief sponsor, kept his job, and continues to push the idea of Freddie and Fannie taking their ‘profits’ and using them to fund low-down-payment mortgages. I’m sorry to keep harping on Congressman Frank. He didn’t cause the whole crisis, or if he did he didn’t mean to. It’s just that markets learn from their mistakes, and he doesn’t.”
http://www.pajamasmedia.com/instapundit/archives2/024658.php
Mr. Joe on September 21, 2008 at 3:21 PM
If the NYT predicted the mess in September of 1999, it can’t be Bush’s fault. Not entirely, anyway. But that’s who the average liberal will blame.
Disturb the Universe on September 21, 2008 at 3:21 PM
No one messes with the Great One! I love his show because it is like attending a college classroom with an INTELLIGENT professor. Mark is absolutely right, however we have people on our side of the aisle that are afraid of offending these tax and spend, corrupt democrats.
jencab on September 21, 2008 at 3:22 PM
The Wall Street Examiner: The government has in turn taken us from the the brink of financial system collapse and added to that the threat of financial collapse of the government itself, a fate which I would suggest is far worse than allowing Wall Street to collapse and money market funds to break the buck. No question, that’s a bad thing, but a loss of faith in the financial system is one thing, a loss of faith in the government’s ability to pay its bills and protect the public is a catastrophe of unimaginable proportions. If this program is passed by Congress, I fear that our fate will have been sealed.
I have no hope that this can be stopped in the House. Let’s hope that enough of our Senators are wise enough and courageous enough to stop this madness before it destroys our beloved Republic.
KentAllard on September 21, 2008 at 3:23 PM
This sums it up in two words: Government Sucks
I love Mark Levin…only radio guy I listen to that I download later if I miss him (his downloads are FREE at MarkLevinShow.com)
ex-Democrat on September 21, 2008 at 3:25 PM
McCain has an instant issue spoon fed to him.
Thanks Kent for the ice age link. I’ll share that with the
kooksteachers I work with.Mojave Mark on September 21, 2008 at 3:25 PM
I heard it live. I am a huge fan of Levin now. He really goes after the Libs who call his show. Gives me release.
Smart man.
carbon_footprint on September 21, 2008 at 3:27 PM
The Great One!
Kensington on September 21, 2008 at 3:31 PM
Re: Kent’s OT link:
Gee, you mean the sun has an impact on the temperature on planet Earth? Color me surprised :/
Nice link–thanks!!
PimFortuynsGhost on September 21, 2008 at 3:34 PM
Levin is a walking library.
Smartest man on radio.
And, a Bama fan, to boot! :)
Roll Tide, Mark.
GulfCoastBamaFan on September 21, 2008 at 3:42 PM
OT
But FBI issues search warrants in Tennessee in Palin hacking case
http://acanadianguy.blogspot.com/2008/09/fbi-serves-search-warrant-against-david.html
CanadianGuy on September 21, 2008 at 3:43 PM
CanadianGuy on September 21, 2008 at 3:43 PM
Someone also hacked into Bill O’Reilly’s Factor Website, stealing the e-mail addresses, passwords, etc. of his Premium Members.
Disturb the Universe on September 21, 2008 at 3:47 PM
Yeah, I saw that. It’s not getting much attention
CanadianGuy on September 21, 2008 at 3:48 PM
Mark Levin also linked to this article on his website concerning Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
http://blog.heritage.org/2008/07/14/morning-bell-the-lefts-crony-capitilism-exposed/
shelbysbest on September 21, 2008 at 3:52 PM
I know it’s juvenile, but I laugh every time he says “Hillary Rotten Clinton.”
Jim Treacher on September 21, 2008 at 3:59 PM
Yeah, I saw that. It’s not getting much attention
CanadianGuy on September 21, 2008 at 3:48 PM
I’m not surprised. I imagine O’Reilly will have something to say about it.
Disturb the Universe on September 21, 2008 at 4:00 PM
i’m sick of levin’s same intro and the bland linkin park music… every single time
Xolom on September 21, 2008 at 4:00 PM
This is why I listen to Mark every day.
No other talk show host will allow this kind of explanation of events and situations for fear of listeners getting bored and changing stations.
Not Mark. He does this often and listeners like me love it. Keep up the good work Mark.
Helloyawl on September 21, 2008 at 4:05 PM
Rick Davis was a top lobbyist for Fannie and Freddie.
He even wrote a letter to OFHEO (Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight) saying, “Still others have and will try to make the argument to OFHEO that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac create systemic risk. Those that say that do so either because they are hostile to homeownership or because they have competitive needs to try to hamper the two most efficient private sector engines for homeownership. The Homeownership Alliance hopes that OFHEO will scrutinize the motives of those who make such claims. Any objective analysis of the roles played by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac would show that they in fact reduce systemic risk while anchoring a housing finance system in which consumers have the upper hand.”
Rick Davis is John McCain’s campaign manager.
KentAllard on September 21, 2008 at 4:08 PM
Proof once again the the commie Democrats goals have nothing to do with helping the poor. Their true goal is the same as all Communist and Socialist, to bring America to its knees.
Maxx on September 21, 2008 at 4:12 PM
Sprite just wagged his tail in Dog Heaven.
Mr. Joe on September 21, 2008 at 4:14 PM
GET OFF THE PHONE YA BIG DOPE!
IrishEi on September 21, 2008 at 4:14 PM
Great broadcast by Mark Levin.
aengus on September 21, 2008 at 4:16 PM
Good. When it gets here, let’s all go out, find Al Gore, and hang that fraudulent sonofabitch.
ManlyRash on September 21, 2008 at 4:16 PM
When it gets here let’s form a posse, find Al Gore and hang that lying sack of sh!t.
ManlyRash on September 21, 2008 at 4:19 PM
Did you know that many shows have theme music?
Jim Treacher on September 21, 2008 at 4:19 PM
There is no such place as ‘Dog Heaven.’ There is only Heaven – and yes, all dogs go there we they die. Cats, of course, all go to Hell. Every one of ‘em.
ManlyRash on September 21, 2008 at 4:20 PM
Followed immediately by “Her Thighness.”
ManlyRash on September 21, 2008 at 4:21 PM
Great companions piece by Newt Gingrich: “If Washington Wants Our Money, It Owes Some Answers”
Much as I can’t stand Levin’s voice, I love how his mind works. He is a jewel.
onlineanalyst on September 21, 2008 at 4:29 PM
Oh, Manly, I guess that I have fallen out of love with you.
onlineanalyst on September 21, 2008 at 4:30 PM
He’s been talking about this for quite some time. An education indeed.
baldilocks on September 21, 2008 at 4:38 PM
The Democrats had no good intentions. How can Democrats say to America’s financial institutions, under force of law, to loan their money to people that can’t pay them back? This is just more intentional destruction of America’s economy, the Democrats knew exactly where it would lead. And the Democrats’ response to the crisis they created came from Harry Reid, “no one knows what to do,” so they are planning to adjourn.
Now the Democratic “solution” to the crisis is to just get out of town and let the economy crash, which was their goal from the beginning.
You see, in order for the Democrats to have the socialist utopia they envision for our country, the current system must fall, and they have been working very hard to make that happen for a very long time. They are almost there and they are pretty darn happy about it.
Who would expect them to say in town to fix the very problem they worked so hard to create?
Maxx on September 21, 2008 at 4:40 PM
Cripes. You never said you were in love with me. Had I known that I would have lied and said that I love cats. Just as well, since cat people should hook up only with cat people and dog people with dog people.
Besides, I have scriptural proof for my assertion: it’s right there in the New Testament, where St. Paul very righteously condemns felines in his Second Epistle to the Veterinarians.
ManlyRash on September 21, 2008 at 4:41 PM
Besides, their lapdogs in the Drive-By media will carry he water and blame all of it on Bush, McCain, Wall Street, the free market and capitalism.
ManlyRash on September 21, 2008 at 4:44 PM
“Barack Milhouse Nobama!”
On the one hand, the goofy nicknames and such probably keep people from taking him seriously. On the other hand, those people wouldn’t take him seriously anyway, and he’s entertaining the people who are listening for information and not just something to put up on Media Matters.
Jim Treacher on September 21, 2008 at 4:51 PM
Truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, as someone somewhere said. This was a powerful message, but if it doesn’t get out to the people it’s not going to change much.
We all know how powerful advertising is! I remember the commercials put out against the Hillary care in the 90’s,, the man an woman sitting on their couches talking about how they will no longer be able to choose their own doctors,,, they were powerful commercials and were run frequently in a massive market.
That is what needs to be done here. A massive TV campaign needs to be done to get the truth out about who and what caused this!
JellyToast on September 21, 2008 at 4:53 PM
Our station that carried Mark Levin has decided to jump out in front of the possible re-institution of the Fairness Doctrine and play progressives after three p.m. I need to write them and ask it’s working out for them. They lose me at noon.
Cindy Munford on September 21, 2008 at 4:53 PM
The problem is Allah, they – the liberals – don’t have good intentions.. they only have good sounding intentions… there’s a big difference.
And you (and many others) make a big mistake every time you analyze their policies and come to a conclusion that there’s any good in them.
I know, that in so doing, you are trying to sound reasonable and impress others with your fairness. But this is where you fall of the train tracks and wind up not having the guts to completely destroy all of the liberals’ premises.
Please try again.
Mcguyver on September 21, 2008 at 5:10 PM
If it’s true that personal information of Premium Members has been obtained by hacking, O’Reilly has a LOT of explaining to do. It is his responsibility to keep that information private and secure. He should have had better security for his website. I’d cancel my premium membership if I had one for something like that… All those people are now targets for identity theft!
Outlander on September 21, 2008 at 5:11 PM
I’m writing this slowly this time so perhaps you will comprehend and stop posting this nonsense.
The Homeownership Alliance was not a lobbying organization. It was a PR coalition funded by the Realtors and Homebuilders as well as Fannie and Freddie. Pretty much all it did was write letters like this that nobody read and run newspaper ads promoting homeownership. I think I have a little more knowledge about this than your cutting and pasting from whatever liberal blog of the day you are reading. I interviewed with Rick Davis for a job with the Homeownership Alliance. And I formerly lobbied for three of Fannie and Freddie’s biggest customers. I never attended a hearing or a meeting on Capitol Hill regarding Fannie and Freddie at which Rick Davis was present. He was not a big player.
Besides, Rick Davis did not make the decisions to explode the size and scope of Fannie Mae, take it deep into subprime lending, and misstate earnings by $11 billion while taking home $100 million in bonuses. Jim Johnson and Frank Raines made those decisions, and they are the ones responsible for the $100 billion of our money that is now going into the company to fix the mess they made. They are Democrats who have traveled in the highest circles of the Democratic Party, advised John Kerry and Barack Obama in their campaigns, and exclusively supported Democrats for years and years.
Barack Obama alone made the decision to hire Jim Johnson to pick his running mate, despite his already well known and sordid history at Fannie Mae; and Johnson would have still been in that post two weeks ago when Fannie Mae melted down, had it not come out that he had gotten sweetheart mortgage deals from Angelo Mozilo at Countrywide.
John McCain was one of the few Senators who consistently warned his colleagues about Fannie and Freddie, and cosponsored tough legislation in 2005 to rein them in. And Rick Davis had worked on his 2000 campaign. It did not make any difference to him then that Davis was working on Fannie Mae’s behalf.
rockmom on September 21, 2008 at 5:19 PM
Although this will work beautifully for the Dems, I doubt they planned a single aspect of this catastrophe. Now they will be able to swoop in and Christmas tree a trillion dollar bill.
What we are seeing is the complete collapse of leadership from the Republican side of the aisle. And no, I’m not just talking about John “let’s fire Chris Cox” McCain.
Valiant on September 21, 2008 at 5:25 PM
I wish there were some in the Republican leadership positions that felt this way. Then we wouldn’t be in this position.
rmgraha on September 21, 2008 at 5:29 PM
rockmom on September 21, 2008 at 5:19 PM
Thank you, rockmom! Great information!
CK MacLeod on September 21, 2008 at 5:37 PM
Holy crap…
That was possible the best hour of radio I’ve ever listened to. This needs to be sent to every person of voting age and made required listening.
Spread the word folks, before it is too late.
cannonball on September 21, 2008 at 5:37 PM
Hey, rockmom – wasn’t Chuck Hagel (booooo – hisssss) also one of the Republicans leading the charge to rein in Fannie & Freddie at the time of that widely quoted 2006 statement on the 2005 act? A close friend of McCain’s at the time? I seem to recall reading that he was the originator of the bill.
I wonder what’s going on with Hagel right now – is he too far in the tank for Obama to speak out? Something even worse?
CK MacLeod on September 21, 2008 at 5:40 PM
Exactly. THANK ME
ManlyRash on September 21, 2008 at 5:42 PM
BTW – I wish someone would come up with a complete transcript of the broadcast. Please let us know if you find one!
CK MacLeod on September 21, 2008 at 5:43 PM
I know Ed and AP wants to pin this all on the FMs, but the truth is much different.
Read the SEC’s testimony this year at http://www.sec.gov/news/testimony/2008/ts061908ers.htm.
The SEC put a program in place a program to supervise four firms in 2004: Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, and Morgan Stanley to fill a gap in the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act. We all know how successful they were.
jim m on September 21, 2008 at 6:10 PM
I’ve never listened to Mark Levin before. That was an hour I will remember. Just excellent!
Connie on September 21, 2008 at 6:15 PM
I am not crazy about bailouts, but I like bank runs even less. I did read that if the government takes and then liquidates the assets, it could offset the costs. But that might take about 15 years.
Truth is it might take years to really pin down just what happened.
I stopped Levin when he said conservatives should leave the GOP when McCain was nominated. Sorry, I just lost a lot of respect for the guy.
Terrye on September 21, 2008 at 6:18 PM
Terrye on September 21, 2008 at 6:18 PM
Hear No Evil, See No Evil, Speak No Evil. It’s a shame you are not open to hearing some truth.
Mark is only putting pressure on McCain to stop carrying the Liberal water by McCain’s attacks on Capitalism and Wall Street as the root cause. Mark Supports McCain and only because of his choice of Palin.
McCain is selling the same propaganda that the Democrats are. How is this helpful to Conservatives?
Egfrow on September 21, 2008 at 6:24 PM
Egfrow:
For one thing, I have to listen to Levin on the radio because it is almost impossible for me to get enough speed to listen to him online. And I have one of those jobs where it can be hard for me to listen to talk radio. So listening to Levin was always something of a job for me. It was in fact easier for me to read what he said after the fact.
I am sure he is a smart guy, I do not doubt it at all. But when Levin was willing to walk away from the Republican party because he did not like the nominee, I just said to hell with bothering with him.
I guess I don’t think that McCain is selling me propaganda. I don’t see how walking away from the Republican party and letting the Democrats win helps conservatives either.
But do not tell me what is and is not truth. I am quite capable of forming my own opinion on that score.
Terrye on September 21, 2008 at 6:37 PM
And you know something? McCain takes crap from the Democrats for being married to a woman who is rich, and yet some people on the right claim he hates rich people and capitalism. I think both extremes are wrong.
Terrye on September 21, 2008 at 6:39 PM
I may not much like the guy, but even the Anchoress has a post up on his program..so it must be really informative. Here is a little piece of it:
Yes, I know is voice is grating, yes I know he can be too rude by half on his program, but take the time to listen to this audio of last Friday’s Mark Levin show. (H/T Ace) You want the breakdown of what happened and why it happened? Levin gives it to you in plain language. Listen to it, even if you really don’t want to. I didn’t want to, but it’s important that we understand what happened, here, historically, that we don’t simply succumb to spin. Look past Levin’s politics and his cranky yelling, and just get the history.
He talks about how the foundation for the crisis was laid down in 1977 by Jimmy Carter (a point which the editors of Investor’s Business Daily go into here) and the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) which came into being under his watch.
Levin talks about how the sub-prime mortgages began to take off with Bear Sterns in the 1990’s, which is again explained in more detail here [All Emphasis Mine - admin]:
To hear today’s Democrats, you’d think all this started in the last couple years…the Carter-era Community Reinvestment Act forced banks to lend to uncreditworthy borrowers, mostly in minority areas.
Age-old standards of banking prudence got thrown out the window. In their place came harsh new regulations requiring banks not only to lend to uncreditworthy borrowers, but to do so on the basis of race.
These well-intended rules were supercharged in the early 1990s by President Clinton. Despite warnings from GOP members of Congress in 1992, Clinton pushed extensive changes to the rules requiring lenders to make questionable loans.
Lenders who refused would find themselves castigated publicly as racists. As noted this week in an IBD editorial, no fewer than four federal bank regulators scrutinized financial firms’ books to make sure they were in compliance.
Failure to comply meant your bank might not be allowed to expand lending, add new branches or merge with other companies. Banks were given a so-called “CRA rating” that graded how diverse their lending portfolio was.
Terrye on September 21, 2008 at 6:55 PM
Terrye,
I don’t think he hates Captialism but his who deal is that is is the guy who reaches across the Isle, and in doing so he looses starts to shed conservative skin when he picks and chooses to take pop shots at Capitalism and Wall Street for the sake of “Reaching Across the Isle.” It’s a purely political gesture but it does not leave a good taste in the mouths of Conservatives when he says crap like that.
Egfrow on September 21, 2008 at 6:56 PM
Levin is a conservative FIRST and a Republican if they govern according to conservative and constitutional principles. Therefore if the Republican _team_ is pandering or falling short of it’s principles he calls them on it.
Republicans run into trouble when the lust for money, power and fame overwhelms their principles.
Partisan on September 21, 2008 at 7:00 PM
This is somewhat of topic, but:
McCain is getting criticized for saying that the fundamentals of the economy are strong. This is something that leaders need to say to the extent it is credible in a crisis.
Apparently Obama is so inexperienced that he thinks a responsible leader can shout “FIRE” in a crowded theater, if it helps dominate a campaign news cycle.
Obama seems willing to create or accelerate a financial panic just to further his personal ambitions.
What a useless dirt-bag! (with apologies to soil containers)
Right_of_Attila on September 21, 2008 at 7:02 PM
Rockmom, you indeed rock ma’am. It ticks me off to no end that folks who should know better repeat Obama talking points here. McCain is not morally equivalent to any Democrat in this mess.
Now Barney wants homeowners bailed, although I would wager only a small fraction are blameless in their own mess. As a good landlord, let ‘em rent I say.
rhodeymark on September 21, 2008 at 7:05 PM
I absolutely love listening to Mark Levin 99.99999999% of the time. And 99.9999999999% of time, I’m 120% in agreement with him.
Friday night, he appeared to be FIRMLY of the opinion that this bailout should be rejected based on not rescuing the various parties that created this mess…the people who took on mortgages far larger than they could possibly afford, the financial firms who approved their mortgages, the financial firms who sliced, diced, and bundled parts of mortgages into securitized mortgage backed securities whose risk was very hard to accurately assess.
As a conservative, I normally fully support this position…in normal times.
These are NOT normal times.
What the general public still does not know…because it’s not being widely reported…was that as of Thursday morning, a LOT more money market funds started “breaking the buck” than one that was reported, The Reserve Fund, and that because of that, the commecial paper market began to collapse. COMMMERCIAL PAPER STOPPED TRADING. STOPPED.
What does this mean? Money market funds…CASH funds…funds that are ALWAYS supposed to have one share = $1.00 USD and NOT break the buck…both obtain cash from commercial paper and lend to commercial paper to make interest spread on what they pay out in very small rates of interest. The buck-breaking caused the commercial paper market to collapse and this hasn’t been well-reported…perhaps for fear of avoiding panic, since a “run” on money market funds, cash funds, DID begin on Thursday.
What happens when commercial paper collapses? THE OVERALL ECONOMY COLLAPSES. STOPS DEAD IN ITS TRACKS. Why? Businesses large and small, of all shades and stripes, buy and sell commercial paper to borrow and lend very short term for the conduct of normal business…placing orders for supplies, shipping stuff to customers, investing in ongoing operations. This has been common practice for decades, if not over a century.
If a run on money market funds takes place, and if the commercial paper market collapses, the American Economy STOPS. DEAD. Result: GREAT DEPRESSION II. Tent cities. Looting. People jumping out of windows. People lining up for bread and soup. All those cheap, money-saving ways to economize that our parents and grandparents grew up with that used to embarrass us in our affluence as we grew? Better remember ‘em quick…we may need to practice them again if this bailout doesn’t pass Congress.
Hank Paulson himself says he hates having to do this but based on what he and Bernanke learned of the likely alternative, the less expensive option.
Given what I heard from my sources inside the financial industry last Friday…my own mind has been changed and I agree that it’s unfortunately absolutely necessary.
Otherwise, get ready to experience the 1930’s all over again. And with existential threats like a nuclear Iran, Sunni jihadis, a resurgent Russia pitting itself against us, and a risen China…the United States can ill afford to be that deeply weakened over a moral stance.
Yes, the financial system is THAT BAD OFF. What I heard from insiders last friday, TOTALLY SHOCKED ME.
Shirotayama on September 21, 2008 at 7:07 PM
Rockmom – you are a fount of knowledge on this subject! Thank you for your efforts. Let us know when you publish your book! Most of us here really appreciate your insight! Just saying…
Neocon Peg on September 21, 2008 at 7:10 PM
Check your local listings, Connie. Or, just do what I do and listen online every weekday, from 6:00-8:00pm, at http://www.wabcradio.com :)
Tuning Spork on September 21, 2008 at 7:11 PM
Another cause for this mess that is NOT being widely reported:
The repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act during the Clinton Administration…signed by Bill Clinton, but pushed hard by none other than former Republican Senataor Phill Gramm, who became after leaving the Senate, a Banking industry lobbyist.
The Glass-Steagall Act created hard barriers between depository institutions (banks and thrifts), insurance companies, and investment banks (i.e., stock/bond brokerage houses). Once it was repealed, all of these 3 kinds of companies could later mix and match all of these kinds of products and package ‘em together.
Had Glass-Steagall not been repealed, the mortgage-backed securities that packaged the Alt-A (Sub-prime) high risk mortgages…the underlying cause of this mess (AIG actually insured these things…this is the “counterparty risk” you keep hearing about) could NEVER have been designed or launched for market. Meaning the crises wouldn’t have evolved.
So, THANK YOU SENATOR GRAMM for hosing us.
It wasn’t just his fault, however. The Clinton Administration had a LOT to do with this, too. A very revealing article got written by Neil Boortz…revealing because he has direct experience with what I refer to.
Read on…it’s an eye-opener:
http://townhall.com/columnists/NealBoortz/2008/09/19/the_rest_of_the_meltdown_story
Shirotayama on September 21, 2008 at 7:19 PM
Finally, I found this report quite interesting reading:
http://www.ricedelman.com/cs/education/article?articleId=762&titleParam=Update%20Regarding%20the%20Financial%20Markets
Shirotayama on September 21, 2008 at 7:21 PM
Shirotayama: I am with you 100% on this one, and I have one or two things to add to what you said.
I am for this bailout on one condition: these laws that Levin cited, the ones from 1977 and 1995, need to be repealed in this package. I think I could trade a trillion dollars of temporary socialism for that condition. It is my hope that these trillion dollars buy us an extra month to get ready for an extended time of economic hell that is clearly upon us.
While the economy goes down the crapper anyway and we get our bread and soup lines, I’d like to see some constitutional amendments to the effect that, while governments can tell businesses (i.e. the banks) what NOT to do, it would hereafter be unconstitutional for the government to tell businesses what kinds of things they MUST do, outside of reporting required for taxation purposes. As that premise seems basic to the idea of freedom of choice, I’d like to see the first amendment clarified for businesses in this manner. I’ll leave the drafting of that language to someone else, but I think it’s necessary to make it more difficult to get a second repeat of 1929. The laws passed in 1933, a time when the American people knew up from down about what constituted sound business practice, clearly weren’t given a solid enough foundation. Repeating bad history once is one time too many.
flutejpl on September 21, 2008 at 7:24 PM
Levin said nothing of the kind, Shiro. He was pointing out who and what policies were responsible for this mess.
He knows as well as you and I that federal intervention is neccessary at this point since Fannie/Freddie now hold roughly 50% of all mortgages in the country. He explained why that is and who is to blame and, also, that those who are to blame **cough**Dodd**Frank**cough**Shumer**Ried**cough** are trying to put blame on Bush and the Republicans (generally) when they, themselves, were the ones only a few years ago complaining that the regulations, put in place after Enron, were stunting the growth of the sub-prime markets.
The facts are clear: Bush and the Republicans (generally) were the ones calling for oversight of the banking industries’ books to be sure that they were solvent.
It’s the Democrats’ policies in the ’70s and ’90s — and Democrats’ obstruction of oversight of the consequences of those policies in this decade — that led to this mess. That’s what Mark Levin laid out in this show.
Tuning Spork on September 21, 2008 at 7:26 PM
The point of the bailout package, flutejpl, is to actually AVOID the bread & soup lines and tent cities. By keeping the overall economy moving and the financial system…the economy’s blood supply…from totally melting down…eventually, the economy recovers and the bailout becomes exactly what Paulson and Bernanke intend it to be…PURELY TEMPORARY.
My sources tell me something else: The Democrats in Congress literally admitted to Paulson and Bernanke that their plan had been to allow for economic collapse to ensure both an Obama win and an overwhelming majority in both houses.
What changed their mind?
In that closed door session Paulson and Bernanke had at Congress Thursday night, they literally told Pelosi, Reid, and company that if they DIDN’T bail out the financial system NOW, there wouldn’t BE an economy for the Democrats to possibly rescue. No riding in like White Knights, making people love the Democrat party again like with Roosevelt. Wasn’t gonna happen this time. PERIOD. Instead, when the general populace found out that it was THEM that was planning to block the bailout…and the dems WERE planning to block the bailout until Paulson & Bernanke talked to them…that it would mean total revolt against their party by teh general public.
Apparently, what the Treasury Secretary and Fed Chairman told them so totally scared the s**t outta them, they dropped all opposition to the plan.
All you people who are gonna disagree with me on conservative principles…ordinarily I’d agree with you. In this case, given what I’ve heard…I have two choice words for y’all. My dad grew up in the Depression, never held back in telling me about it and how damned hard it was, and HELL NO I do NOT want to have to experience that for myself. Compared to what he told me, temporary socialism is a small, small price to pay if it does in fact keep the overall economy moving and the financial system alive.
Shirotayama on September 21, 2008 at 7:36 PM
To learn a lot of GOOD stuff about how the US financial regulatory structure got rendered TOTALLY obsolete, read this:
http://www.treasury.gov/press/releases/reports/Blueprint.pdf
Don’t bother trying to read the whole 200+ pages. Instead, just skim the 21 page executive summary. I learned a HECKUVA lotta good stuff I didn’t know before about this crisis, how it happened, and what should be done about it short-term, mid-term, and long-term, that I didn’t know before.
Shirotayama on September 21, 2008 at 7:38 PM
Tuning Spork,
Re your comment “**cough**Dodd**Frank**cough**Shumer**Ried**cough** are trying to put blame on Bush and the Republicans (generally) when they, themselves, were the ones only a few years ago complaining that the regulations, put in place after Enron, were stunting the growth of the sub-prime markets.”
Yeah, I hate those b**tards too. Schumer himself is SINGLE-HANDEDLY RESPONSIBLE for taking down IndyMac Bank by posting their problems on his website rather than just ringing ‘em up to figure out how they could be helped. He chose them as a victim, and a LOT of people have lost their retirements, their survival money, their emergency money, because of Schmucky, as Levin (and I) like to call him.
Except as I heard it from my inside source…Schumer was one of the legislators who was literally open-mouthed with shock at what Paulson and Bernanke were telling him and his colleagues in the legislature.
Shirotayama on September 21, 2008 at 7:42 PM
“It’s the Democrats’ policies in the ’70s and ’90s — and Democrats’ obstruction of oversight of the consequences of those policies in this decade — that led to this mess. That’s what Mark Levin laid out in this show.”
If I’m misquoting Levin, I apologize. I respect him tremendously and love the guy’s show. What I said, was that on his show on Friday night, what I heard when I turned my car radio on, suggested he was in opposition to the bailout based on the principle of not rescuing bozos who got themselves in trouble. While I fully agree with this position nearly 100% of the time…this time is the exception. I’d far rather see the economy keep moving than to take it down in full scale collapse purely based on conservative principles.
I don’t disagree with this, but think Phil Gramm oughta be lumped in with the guilty. The Glass-Steagall Act worked EXCEPTIONAlLY WELL for 60′ish years. WHAT WAS THE REASON TO REPEAL IT?
Shirotayama on September 21, 2008 at 7:47 PM
Exactamundo. I’ve been sayin’…
Manipulation
And as I posted the other day, Paulson went to Congress to put the fear of the Wrath of God into them.
Connie on September 21, 2008 at 7:52 PM
Good clarification… I just don’t think that anything the government does now is ultimately going to be enough to rectify the bigger problems the market faces. I think it buys us more time to get our acts together, just like our nation’s largest cash holders propped us up similarly for a bit more time in 1929 before they lost their shirts in the big crashes of late October. Still, I think that the extra time and possible softening of the inevitable fall make the package worth it.
My reason for lack of confidence long term… when Obama wins and has an apparently strong donkey majority in Congress on tap for 2009, or even if McCain wins with a similar problem, the average investor has to believe that his investment taxes, should he hold his investments beyond Dec. 31, are going to go up. Anybody holding stocks or funds that still show a profit, provided he isn’t an oaf, would pull out his money while the tax law is still favorable. Given the bearish mood in place already, that’s going to crash the market unbelievably as nobody (other than the aforementioned oaf) will want to buy into a situation where anything he makes will get taxed unmercifully. This problem is coming, and the federal government won’t be able to borrow or print its way out of it.
flutejpl on September 21, 2008 at 8:00 PM
What Levin said the Heart of the Matter and the Root Cause.
Chakra Hammer on September 21, 2008 at 8:02 PM
Brigette Gabriel’s site, http://www.americancongressfortruth.com/ was also hacked into yesterday and her homepage was replaced with something called realinfaz.com.
powerpro on September 21, 2008 at 8:04 PM
Can you get me an actual quote on that reference from the democrats admitting to Bernanke and Paulson that they sought an economic collapse for the benefit of their party? I can think of no better way to ensure the death of that socialist regime of a party than to have that quote ready for mass distribution (and appropriate charges of treason) should my scenario from previous comments be correct.
We all know that our economic ruin for their political gain has been their intent. I’d just like to see them actually be on the record for it for once.
flutejpl on September 21, 2008 at 8:05 PM
People getting loans that they know they shouldn’t get(this is irresponsible) , and predatory bankers looking to sell people loans that know the people can’t pay for(this is criminal) , giving out loans like candy and expecting US as taxpayers to foot the bill..(that is grand larceny)
Chakra Hammer on September 21, 2008 at 8:06 PM
AKA Her Thighness. LOL
Mark Levin is a genius. I try to listen to him daily but I missed the first part of this broadcast. I’m so sorry I did! It was brilliant. NRO commented on it and I’ve seen it a few other places too.
We must stand against the rising drumbeat of socialist propaganda.
The cost of freedom is eternal vigilance. I don’t remember who’s quote that is…but it’s brilliant and an important reminder that “freedom isn’t free.”
powerpro on September 21, 2008 at 8:07 PM
I listened to Obama spokesman, Bill Burton, this afternoon. He said what Obama was interested in getting out of the bill they’re working on was “making sure there is help for homeowners.” All I could think of was isn’t that what got us into this mess to begin with?
Connie on September 21, 2008 at 8:10 PM
Compassion can only go so far especially, when negligence, and willful and forced ignorance are entered into the equation then that isn’t compassion anymore, it’s called corruption.
Chakra Hammer on September 21, 2008 at 8:15 PM
That and dangerous levels of leverage along with credit rating agencies that weren’t diligent enough to give investors the information they needed to properly assess their risks.
dedalus on September 21, 2008 at 8:20 PM
I listened live on Friday and again tonight. Perhaps what you heard was his rant about (paraphrasing, of course) “You and I didn’t cause this! This is what they did/do behind the scenes! This is what they don’t want you to know about!”
If that’s the part you caught then I understand the misunderstanding. Mark Levin, in no way, argued that a bailout should not happen. He was educating us as to how and why it, now, has to happen — to all of our detriment as a country.
“Socialism sucks!”
–Mark Levin, 9-19-08
Tuning Spork on September 21, 2008 at 8:22 PM
Chakra Hammer on September 21, 2008 at 8:22 PM
Waters: SocializeThe Oil Industry
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqjFBiPMmBE
Looks like this is what the Democrats are all about!
Chakra Hammer on September 21, 2008 at 8:25 PM
The veil has slipped off the Democrats!
Communist Democrats how can they argue ANY different?
Chakra Hammer on September 21, 2008 at 8:26 PM
Or, (not to paraphrase so much as to “concisify”):
“Socialism creates poor people!”
–Mark Levin, 9-19-08
Tuning Spork on September 21, 2008 at 8:27 PM
Partisan:
I understand that Levin is a conservative first and a Republican second, but even he agrees that McCain was far better on something like this than Obama.
Terrye on September 21, 2008 at 8:30 PM
Connie:
One thing that just annoys me to death is that people like Obama consistently over look the fact that a lot of these loans were not gotten by homeowners, they were gotten by speculators who made money flipping houses. Those people just dumped the property and walked away from the laons when things got tough. They do not need any help.
Terrye on September 21, 2008 at 8:33 PM
Poor people have been around for a long time. Socialism usually happens when they get guns or enough votes. Probably the main problem is the negative impact on economic growth.
dedalus on September 21, 2008 at 8:54 PM
With respect………………. not long enough, not loud enough, and should be broadcast 24/7.
John and Sarah, are you paying attention? This is one of ten things to use to win the election.
Seven Percent Solution on September 21, 2008 at 8:57 PM
Agreed.
The lenders were’nt “predatory” (whatever that would mean to a businessman). They were compelled, by law, under the CRA to loan to high-risk borrowers. The risky borrowers saw the deal and thought “this is my chance…yes!…” and took the flex-rate mortage that they were allowed to take only because the lender was obligated, by law, to hand out loans to risky borrowers.
That’s the crux of this mess right there. It wasn’t the lenders that wanted to spend themselves out of business, it was our government that wanted them to spend themselves out of business.
No, even I don’t presume that Democrats wanted the banking system to fail. I just believe that they wanted to help people own their own homes before they wanted to bother to learn about how the banking system actually works.
God, I’m sick of “politicians”.
Tuning Spork on September 21, 2008 at 8:57 PM
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