Economy

McCain's talk radio supporters are trying to rewrite history regarding the causes of the financial crisis.

This article sets the record straight.

By David Goldstein and Kevin G. Hall | McClatchy Newspapers

WASHINGTON — As the economy worsens and Election Day approaches, a conservative campaign that blames the global financial crisis on a government push to make housing more affordable to lower-class Americans has taken off on talk radio and e-mail.

Commentators say that's what triggered the stock market meltdown and the freeze on credit. They've specifically targeted the mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which the federal government seized on Sept. 6, contending that lending to poor and minority Americans caused Fannie's and Freddie's financial problems.

Federal housing data reveal that the charges aren't true, and that the private sector, not the government or government-backed companies, was behind the soaring subprime lending at the core of the crisis.

John McCain wants you to forget about his role in our country's last major financial crisis and costly bailout: the savings and loan crisis of the late '80s and early '90s.

But voters deserve to know that the failed philosophy and culture of corruption that created the savings and loan crisis then are alive in the current crisis -- and in John McCain's plans for our economic future.

Here's a superb 13-minute documentary about John McCain's role in that financial crisis --

NYTimes: The Reckoning: Agency’s ’04 Rule Let Banks Pile Up New Debt

Ask yourself one question, "Is 391 percent interest too high?" Yes!

Now you know how to vote on Issue 5, Ohio's payday loan referendum that gready lenders are trying to get on the Nov. 4 ballot.

Upper Arlington Progressive Action first brought this to your attention several months ago when we learned about the effort to reform payday lending. We applauded the passage of House Bill 545, which reduced the annual percentage of interest that can be charged down to 28 percent.

Obama Expected to Better Address Housing Market Issues than McCain, According to Zillow.com Survey

Housing/Mortgage/Foreclosure Among Top 3 Issues New President Should Be Prepared to Address

In his recent remarks in St. Clair Shores, Michigan, Biden said, "John McCain has confessed, and I quote -- I want to make sure I get it right -- he said, 'It's easy for me to be in Washington and frankly be somewhat divorced from the day-to-day challenges people have.'

"Well, he's right. He's right. If all you do is walk the halls of power, all you'll hear is the wants of the powerful. Ladies and gentleman, I believe that's why John McCain could say with a straight face as recently as this morning, and this is a quote, 'the fundamentals of the economy are strong.' That's what John said. He says that we've made 'great progress economically' in the Bush years.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I could walk from here to Lansing, and I wouldn't run into a single person who thought our economy was doing well -- unless I ran into John McCain."

He added, "What is John's response to the state of the economy? Let me quote him: 'A lot of this is psychological.' Let me tell you something: losing your job is more than a state of mind. It means staring at the ceiling at night thinking that you may lose your house because you can't get next month's mortgage payment.

"It means looking at your pregnant wife and not knowing how you're going to come up with the money to pay for the delivery of your child, since you don't have health care anymore. It means looking at your child when they come home from college at Christmas and saying 'Honey, I'm sorry, we're not going to be able to send you back next semester.' It's not a state of mind; it's a loss of dignity."

Obama's "Fundamentals" ad highlights how disturbingly out of touch John McCain is with what's going in the lives of ordinary Americans. On a day when Wall Street was in crisis John McCain continued to insist that the "fundamentals of the economy are strong."

The I-35W Mississippi River bridge catastrophically failed during the evening rush hour on August 1, 2007, collapsing to the river and riverbanks beneath. Thirteen people were killed and approximately one hundred more were injured. The average age of American bridges is 43 years, approaching the normal lifespan of 50 years. One fourth have a problem.

CBS Evening News produced this excellent new segment video entitled Payday Advance Loans Seem Simple, But Can Lead To Endless Cycle Of Debt

"In the current state of the economy, about 2,600 Americans a day file for bankruptcy. Others are turning to a financial quick fix called "payday loans."

They've now grown into a $59 billion industry.