FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 23, 2008
For more information contact:
Kristin Schaaf
Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement
515/255-0800 or kristin@iowacci.org
As the Congress and the President debate spending $700 billion to bail out Wall Street, Americans are facing an historic moment. Will our elected officials ignore the deceptive and predatory acts of those on Wall Street who caused the crisis -- and reward them? Or, will they act in the interest of the American people who were directly harmed by these predatory practices?
Under the Wall Street proposal, the American taxpayer is being asked to spend $700 billion to buy the mortgage-backed securities (“illiquid assets”) that have caused the current crisis.
But under the proposal, the government would simply become one of the investors that forecloses on homes. The plan will NOT increase the number of loans that are modified so people can stay in their homes long term.
Any bailout passed must include these provisions:
- A moratorium on foreclosures until loans can be investigated for deception and fraud and modified into permanent and affordable fixed rates.
- Increased regulation for the financial industry – the deplorable actions taken by Wall Street must not be allowed to happen again.
- Severely restrict or cap benefit packages for executives and shareholders bailed out with taxpayer dollars – no executive bailed out by the federal government should make more than the president of the United States.
- It’s our money and we want a say – abandoned properties left in the wake of the foreclosure crisis should be made available at deep discounts to non-profits based in the community that can control them and ensure they benefit the community.
- The creation of an oversight body that reports every 30 days to assure that every portion of the bailout is lived up to – this multi-billion dollar transaction must be monitored closely.
Any action must help Main Street, not just Wall Street. This crisis was man-made. The response to it cannot be to reward the greed that caused it. A bailout of this magnitude must include protections for the American people.
***
Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement is a group of everyday people who talk, act and get things done on issues that matter most with thousands of members from all walks of life – urban and rural, black and white, immigrants and lifelong Iowans. We have been addressing mortgage and housing related issues for over three decades.
##
Back
To Articles |
