Could it be? Dare we hope that the Bush folks are at least making an attempt to address a problem in the way it probably should be addressed?
Let’s put aside that fact that BushCo policy is at least partly responsible for the troubles in the mortgage and housing sector, what with interest rates kept artificially low for so long in an attempt to hide the real state of the economy behind high home sales figures. Let’s not think too much about the frequent warnings over the last few years from many economists that the trend of high-risk mortgage lending – driven by low rates and rising prices – would come back to bite us if nothing was done. Let’s allow ourselves to hope, for just a fleeting moment, that the initiatives mentioned to correct this problem will actually be carried out competently and will have the desired effect. (Hah!)
What surprised me is that, at least on the surface, the Bushies seem to be on the homeowners’ side rather than in the lending companies’ pockets! The plan is to assist borrowers in danger of foreclosure to get into affordable FHA-insured loans that will allow them to keep their homes; further, Bush himself has said that there will be no assistance to the mortgage companies and speculators who have gotten themselves into this mess: “A federal bailout of lenders would only encourage a recurrence of the problem.”
I… oh this is so difficult…
I…
(I can’t say it!)
I…
I agree with George Bush.
There. That wasn’t so bad.
Potentially earth-shattering as this news may be, it’s not enough to keep me from being very frightened when reading this quote from the AP article in my local paper, especially given Bush’s track record on predictions:
President Bush confidently predicted the country would safely weather the financial storm.
Uh-oh.
Not just predicted, but confidently predicted?
We’re screwed. Man the lifeboats, America!