Dexia Bank writing off $5.1 billion is U.S. residential mortgages. Our own banks won’t do that because they’re confident that Congress will continue to bail them out, a hope based soundly on past experience.
By the way, I do hope my liberal friends will take the time to read “Reckless Endangerment”. Gretchen Morgenson’s new book on how the mortgage game was played and collapsed. Plenty of blame to go around, of course, but the corrupt relationship between Wall Street, Fannie Mae and our Congress is disgusting and depressing. I’d like liberals to read it because the key to the whole thing was the seemingly good-intentioned (actually, it was nothing of the sort) program pushed by Congress, Bill Clinton and Fannie Mae to provide homeownership to all Americans, no matter how little savings they had (zero, in many cases) and how bad their credit. Just as LLS2 can’t understand why anyone would object to Connecticut forcing employers to guarantee paid sick leave to employees, I’m sure he was just as befuddled by those who, as far back as 1992, warned that the new housing program was a disaster waiting to happen. If he’ll read this book, LLS2 might gain a glimmer of understanding (warning: no pictures).
It’s really Josh Rosner’s book – the ideas and research came from him. Gretchen wouldn’t have know abt the problems without Rosner’s early, early warnings abt the housing failure and the fact the late great Mark Pittman, Bloomberg investigative reporter, wrote about his research back in 06. If Mark was still with us – I’d image Rosner and him would have been co-writters on the book. And because Rosner’s name is on this book that’s why I think it’s worth the read.
Those ghetto slobs had an amazing reach. : )
http://blogs.reuters.com/felix-salmon/2011/05/27/the-feds-secret-giveaway-to-european-banks/