Frank's fingerprints are all over the financial fiasco

"All this was justified as a means of increasing homeownership among minorities and the poor. Affirmative-action policies trumped sound business practices. A manual issued by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston advised mortgage lenders to disregard financial common sense. 'Lack of credit history should not be seen as a negative factor,' the Fed's guidelines instructed. Lenders were directed to accept welfare payments and unemployment benefits as 'valid income sources' to qualify for a mortgage. Failure to comply could mean a lawsuit."

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"But his fingerprints are all over this fiasco. Time and time again, Frank insisted that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were in good shape. Five years ago, for example, when the Bush administration proposed much tighter regulation of the two companies, Frank was adamant that 'these two entities, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, are not facing any kind of financial crisis.' When the White House warned of 'systemic risk for our financial system' unless the mortgage giants were curbed, Frank complained that the administration was more concerned about financial safety than about housing."