Hart Van Denburg wrote on December 9
"Latest Bachmann ACORN concoction: It could regulate banks!"
http://blogs.citypages.com/blotter/2009/12/latest_bachmann.php
The fuss is over Bachmann's response, in her position on the House Financial Services Committee, to an amendment offered by a Democratic Congresswoman from California, Maxine Waters. The amendment would create a Consumer Financial Protection Oversight Board with members from 'fields of consumer protection, fair lending and civil rights, representative of depository institutions that primarily serve under-served communities or representatives of communities that have been significantly impacted by higher-priced mortgage loans'.
The oversight board in Water's amendment would not have the power to set policy or to regulate banking.
Waters made the statement, expanding on the purpose of her amendment, "Over the past two years, we have seen the impact of foreclosures on communities, small banking institutions, and our constituents and how predatory financial products like subprime credit cards and mortgage loans were targeted to minorities and low-income consumers. In order to ensure that this does not happen again, groups and individuals with the consumer's best interest in mind must have a seat at the table."
How does Congresswoman Bachmann respond? She claims that it is expansive new government beauracracy with far-reaching powers.
WHAT 'expansive new government beauracracy? This is about consolidating and making regulation more effective. WHAT far reaching powers??????????
Bachmann goes on to claim that this new oversight board would "make decisions for consumers about the kinds of mortgages, small business loans, and other financial products they may access."
MAKE DECISIONS for consumers? NO.
In her grand finale, Bachmann contradicts her own comment about "far-reaching powers" when she states "In its current form, ACORN would be elegible to sit on an Oversight Board tasked with advising the CFPA Director on his overall strategies and policies."
Not make decisions for consumers, not make policy decisions either; the board would simply ADVISE, and presumably not as the only source for advice on regulation either, but serving as a counterbalance to predatory financial interests.
Which if you deconstruct what Bachmann says, it boils down to 'this is a good idea, there isn't anything else of substance to complain about, so let's fall back on the tattered and torn worn-out boogeyman of ACORN in an attempt to discredit a useful and necessary amendment. Well, that, and expressing the obligatory negativism of the Republican party-sans, the party of not, the party of nope......or perhaps that should be written, the party of NO hope.
Taking a look at the financial state of Bachmann's own 6th Congressional District:
Bachmann's 6th District leads the state of Minnesota with one of the highest foreclosure rates, with housing foreclosures up 56% in Minnesota overall in 2009 compared to 2008. Looking at a map of Minnesota displaying the most recent statistics, while there are three other counties spread around the state with higher individual county foreclosure rates, ALL of the counties in Bachmann's very gerrymandered 6th Congressional District (Anoka, Benton, Sherburne, Stearns, Washington and Wright) are among the more severely affected, with Wright County being one of the four very worst affected. Out of 87 counties in Minnesota, Anoka County ranked 3rd in the state for the most foreclosures, Washington was 5th, Wright tied for 6th, Sherburne was 8th, Stearns just missed the ten worst coming in at 11th, and Benton was the 24th worst county for foreclosures.
From September 2008 to June 2009, unemployment in Minnesota increased 56% to a statewide figure of 7.4% (seasonally adjusted) up from 6.1% in November 2008. But in Bachmann's District 6, the rate is higher, with Sherburne County having an unemployment rate of 8.2%, and Wright County 8%; Anoka and Benton Counties are closer to the state average at 7.6% and 7.3%, while Stearns and Washington Counties come in slightly lower than the statewide average, at 6.6%. In contrast, the state of Minnesota had a rate of 3.8% prior to the recession, back when Bachmann was first elected to Congress. The US overall, has an unemployment rate that is at 10.0%in November 2009, up from 6.8% a year earlier.
Of the six counties represented by Bachmann, 4 are among the top ten HIGHEST stats for filing Bankruptcies: Sherburne - 1st, Wright - 3rd, Benton - 5th, and Anoka - 7th. Washington county just missed out on the top ten, coming in at 13th, while Stearns county came in at 21st, still reflecting an unhealthy economic situation relative to the rest of Minnesota's 87 counties, just not the MOST unhealthy.
Which provokes the inevitable question, whose interests does Bachmann serve?
The interests and needs of her constituents would seem to be coming in a distant second to the welfare and profits of predatory lenders. Bachmann voted against five foreclosure relief bills, the Mortgage Reform and Anti-Predatory Lending Act, the Neighborhood Stabilization Act, the Expanding American Home Ownership Act, the Expand and Preserve Home Ownership through Counseling Act, the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, the FHA Housing Stabilization and Homeownership Retention Act of 2008 (in committee), and Bachmann voted against funding for HOPE for Homeowners (a program to refinance home mortgages facing foreclosure).
It would appear from the statistics, and from her voting record, that there is far more to fear from Bachmann's actual role regarding positive regulation than from any potential, hypothetical role in regulation by ACORN. Bachmann has focused her legislative efforts on stupid issues like not phasing out incandescent lightbulbs in favor of more energy efficient flourescent bulbs; on misstating the science of carbon dioxide; on promoting the notion that this IS a Christian nation (not only a Christian nation, but a predominantly Christian not secular entity according to Bachmann); opposing health care reform, and particularly any balanced and accurate view on abortion.
So, given the statistics, given her voting record, why would Bachmann say such odd things?
Saying distinctly odd things, often and loudly, through any media that will give her a mouthpiece is the defining characteristic of Bachmann. She lives for sensational statements and misstatements about the Census, Re-education Camps, and Un-American ideas in Congress. And let us not by any means ignore her favorite canard about the political left stealing elections, despite no evidence supporting the statement of real, substantiated, significant fraudulent voting affecting the outcome of elections ANYWHERE.
But........why? WHY would Bachmann engage in this behavior, conduct which just recently won her the CNN Wingnut of the Year Award? I think the answer was provided by Minnesota right wing blogger TJSwift, aka "Swiftee" in a comment found under Van Denburg's writing.
"TJSwift says:
This is Bachmann's "rope a dope".
She's gained national prominence for her outspoken, and yes, sometimes outrageous statements....but the gist of her message always is based upon a truth.
Most Americans are too busy trying to make their way through the day to pay attention to politics. Michelle understands that and has found a very effective way to make them sit up and listen.
She is more responsible for taking ACORN down than anyone else. And any group that she sets her aim on would be smart to have a care.
In the mean time, the batshit crazy response Michelle provokes from the left is providing some of the best theater evah."
Deconstructing "Swiftee's" comments, NO, emphatically NO Bachmann's comments are NOT based on fact, they are carefully and artfully crafted to take some item that begins as a fragment of fact but never a complete fact, and from their mislead and to misrepresent it. Many more of Bachmann's statements, as indicated above, are outright bold-faced lies.
The conservative right wing takes great delight in Bachmann's outrageousness, but implicit in Swiftee's statement about 'most Americans' being 'too busy to pay attention to politics' is the assumption that our fellow Americans are not patriotic enough to care about their elected representatives, or issues;and, that our fellow Americans should be manipulated by outrageous, sensationalized mis-statements calculated to get their attention.
This is a tactic that can fairly be described as fear-mongering. It is appallingly condescending in its assumptions about the citizens of this country, and inherently insulting.
But doesn't it just explain perfectly the phenomenon that is Bachmann?
Secondary to doing everything in her power to act against the interests of her own district's constituency, is Bachmann's obsession with ACORN, a source of pride and entertainment to the conservative right. ACORN is not now, nor has it ever been, a serious threat to Bachmann's district, to the state of Minnesota, or the the government of the United States. But hey, focussing on ACORN apparently in the mind of Bachmann and the conservative right is a good use of one's time and resources, a suitable priority ------- but ONLY in the minds of the conservative right.
I don't know much about Bachman so I will not comment on that part. I also agree that Acorn is not a threat to the US, however, they are currently being investigated for voter fraud in several states by the FBI. Everyone has seen the videos of Acorn staffers advising people who tell them of illegal acts and they are advising how to hide them. No they are not a threat but at least while under investigation, and longer if any of it is proven, they should not be involved in things like the board Waters proposed or the Census. I only know what has been on the news so it may not be true but you would not hire an accused child molester to teach children, you would tell them to come back after the charges are cleared.
ReplyDeleteTT,there is a big, big difference between voter registration fraud, which involves taking voter registration, and actual voter fraud, where someone votes illegaly.
ReplyDeleteACORN has had a number of offices investigated for voter REGISTRATION fraud, but to date there has not been a significant problem (I couldn't find ANY) with individuals voting illegaly as a result. The Voter Registration fraud has been with people signing up to vote as 'Minnie Mouse', 'Donald Duck', that kind of thing. The other problems do indicate individual offices have some people who need to be supervised better, clearly.
Compared to the misconduct of the so-called independent contractors that have replaced supplying and servicing the military in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere, the problems with ACORN are like comparing shoplifting to the contractors being on a par with Madoff's Ponzi scheme. Yet neither Bachmann nor her Republican / Conservative colleagues are willing to lift a finger to fairly regulate much less prosecute them.
The actual chance of ACORN having any offices qualified to serve on this kind of bank and financial services regulating advisory board are so remote, that this is just a bad, bad, terribly bad joke. There have been some different programs than the voter registration operations, run by ACORN in the past, but they were completely separate from the few areas that had any kind of financial education or other programs operating. A better analogy would be not hiring anyone with the same last name as an accused but not convicted child molester.
SO, with respect your analogy to hiring an acused child molester to teach children is not the best possible comparison.
As to Bachmann - how can anyone miss her on the news? What you see, is .....who she is. If you need to read more, I've written more here on Penigma for starters.
(And a big thank you to Karla and Nancy, my local library reference staff for their help in getting the most recent figures on Bachmann's District.)
Tuck,
ReplyDeleteLet's be clear, the national organization for ACORN, as far as I know of at least, is NOT under ANY investigation.
A handful of unscrupulous canvassers, people paid on a per registration basis (a system RIFE with incentive for error not just in voting, but also in say.. oh, mortgages and stock trading - perhaps?) were found to have been getting people to fill out fake registration forms. It's a crime, and if convicted, they're going to jail for their $5 per registration fraud.
Not one of those people, not one, is being considered for anything, yet the far right, like Bachmann, insist on perpetrating this fraud of telling the nation that a. ACORN itself knew of and abetted this fraud (or rather implying it by saying ACORN cheated/committed voter fraud) and that b. ACORN leadership was going to direct a myriad of things, including the Census.
It's a load of poppy-cock, and if we are miffed at ACORN for being sloppy about how it compensated and policed its workers, then should we not be equally miffed at Bachmann and her ilk, including the fawning tea-party crowd, who so willing believe this tripe - and they believe it not because they don't have access to better and more factual informtion - but believe it because they WANT to. In short, Bachmann is no less a fraud than the ACORN workers she represents, and when are her groupies going to do as you have said, and tell her to come back only once her potential fraud and lies are cleared?
OK - I sit corrected, ACORN wasn't charged with perpetrating fraud, but it was charged with violating Nevada law for paying incentives for registration submissions.
ReplyDeleteThe funny part of that is of course that we paid bankers incentives for poor loans, and paid brokers incentives for CDS and derivatives trading.
Further, while the underlying case is a problem for me - meaning if this was the law and ACORN violated it - I don't, for a moment accept that ACORN itself committed registration fraud OR voter fraud - and there is NO such accusation against the organizaiton. It DID engage in something careless, probably reckless, and something it should have known would lead to fraudulent registrations - but an accusation of voter fraud is specious on it's face, and any attorney, especially one like Bachmann, should know better.
If you've been following Bachmann on Twitter for more than a month you'd see that she has an obsession with ACORN. Seriously. It's like a "you murdered my family and I will do everything in my power to destroy you" type of thing. I don't fully understand it myself, but it is clearly unhealthy.
ReplyDelete