As you are aware the Attorney General has objected to the sweetheart terms of a settlement deal with Bank of America and other servicers….no, not Florida’s Attorney General, she in fact signed off on a little love letter to the banks wherein she asserted that there is a vicious “moral hazard” in a deal that helped out homeowners. But what about the “moral hazard” of letting the banks commit perpetual, systemic fraud and just walk away? Nah, no problem. What about the “moral hazard” of letting the foreclosure and document mills operating in this state continue to engage in questionable practices and then just walk away with nothing more than a little slap on the wrist? Nah, no problem there. And the thing is I was a recovering Republican.
I thought that the repubs were, you know, the Law and Order types. You know, meting out punishment and all that. Apparently that same moral compass does not extend to the banks. But anywhoo, the banks are pumping the Attorneys General from all across the country to come to some settlement on their investigations. The banks are pressing the flesh and pumping the campaign contributions (bribes) in order to help purchase better terms of settlement…and at least with one AG it seems to be working. Remember, Iowa’s Tom Miller was famously quoted as saying bank execs would be going to jail. Well several dumptrucks full of cash from the banks later and he’s not speaking any such heresy any longer. And now we learn that New York’s attorney general is under intense pressure to lay off the banks….
Eric T. Schneiderman, the attorney general of New York, has come under increasing pressure from the Obama administration to drop his opposition to a wide-ranging state settlement with banks over dubious foreclosure practices, according to people briefed on discussions about the deal. I just love it, this guy pictured below is the the bag man putting pressure on the AG. (No, not the second photo, that’s Napolean Dynamite)…but these are the people who are running “interference” for Goldman Sachs and the banks….
Eric T. Schneiderman has objected to elements of the settlement for months.
In recent weeks, Shaun Donovan, the secretary of Housing and Urban Development, and high-level Justice Department officials have been waging an intensifying campaign to try to persuade the attorney general to support the settlement, said the people briefed on the talks.
Mr. Schneiderman and top prosecutors in some other states have objected to the proposed settlement with major banks, saying it would restrict their ability to investigate and prosecute wrongdoing in a variety of areas, including the bundling of loans in mortgage securities.