Capital New York

tom lamalfa commented on Bloomberg: 'Plain and simple,' Congress caused the mortgage crisis, not the banks

Believe it or not, Bloomberg actually got it correct. And believe me this is no partisan plea for I'm no Republican. Although the bankers drove the getaway car, the Congress masterminded the heist start to doleful conclusion. Both should go to jail. I know this because I watched it happen and documented the entire cosmology contemporaneously. Sadly, I watched this crisis evolve over many years. For me it occurred in almost slow motion as I monitored the events that led to the September 2008 takeover. I have all the documentation. My first job out of grad school was as a secondary market analyst. One of my job duties was as liaison to Fannie and Freddie. Over a decade I got to know the GSEs well: programs, policies, people,etc. I knew the GSEs both before and after 1992, the pivotal year. In 1996 I spoke at the MBA annual convention--as an independent analyst. I lashed out at Fannie and Freddie for their duopolistic policies and warned that the ground was being prepared for a taxpayer bailout. I maintained the criticism for 12 years, until the insolvency and federal takeover. In addition to speeches, articles and Congressional testimony about the potentially dangerous federal housing policy I observed, I wrote and sent 23 letters to Washington VIPs outlining my concerns and suggesting they take a look for themselves. Again all this is documented and available. tom.lamalfa@gmail.com

Posted on November 2nd, 2011 2:30pm