Posted on 09/23/2008 9:21:07 PM PDT by goldstategop
The Mother of All Bailouts has many fathers. As panicked politicians prepare to fork over $1 trillion in taxpayer funding to rescue the financial industry, they've fingered regulation, deregulation, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the Community Reinvestment Act, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, both Bushes, greedy banks, greedy borrowers, greedy short-sellers and minority home ownership mau-mauers (can't call 'em greedy, that would be racist) for blame.
But there's one giant paternal elephant in the room that has slipped notice: how illegal immigration, crime-enabling banks and open-borders Bush policies fueled the mortgage crisis.
It's no coincidence that most of the areas hardest hit by the foreclosure wave -- Loudoun County, Va., California's Inland Empire, Stockton and San Joaquin Valley, and Las Vegas and Phoenix, for starters -- also happen to be some of the nation's largest illegal alien sanctuaries. Half of the mortgages to Hispanics are subprime (the accursed species of loan to borrowers with the shadiest credit histories). A quarter of all those subprime loans are in default and foreclosure.
Regional reports across the country have decried the subprime meltdown's impact on illegal immigrant "victims." A July report showed that in seven of the 10 metro areas with the highest foreclosure rates, Hispanics represented at least one-third of the population; in two of those areas -- Merced and Salinas-Monterey, Calif. -- Hispanics comprised half the population. The amnesty-promoting National Council of La Raza and its Development Fund have received millions in federal funds to "counsel" their constituents on obtaining mortgages with little to no money down; the group almost succeeded in attaching a $10-million earmark for itself in one of the housing bills past this spring.
For the last five years, I've reported on the rapidly expanding illegal alien home loan racket. The top banks clamoring for their handouts as their profits plummet, led by Wachovia and Bank of America, launched aggressive campaigns to woo illegal alien homebuyers. The quasi-governmental Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority jumped in to guarantee home loans to illegal immigrants. The Washington Post noted, almost as an afterthought in a 2005 report: "Hispanics, the nation's fastest-growing major ethnic or racial group, have been courted aggressively by real estate agents, mortgage brokers and programs for first-time buyers that offer help with closing costs. Ads proclaim: "Sin verificacion de ingresos! Sin verificacion de documento!" -- which loosely translates as, 'Income tax forms are not required, nor are immigration papers.'"
In addition, fraudsters have engaged in massive house-flipping rings using illegal aliens as straw buyers. Among many examples cited by the FBI: a conspiracy in Las Vegas involving a former Nevada First Residential Mortgage Company branch manager who directed loan officers and processors in the origination of 233 fraudulent Federal Housing Authority loans valued at over $25 million. The defrauders manufactured and submitted false employment and income documentation for borrowers; most were illegal immigrants from Mexico. To date, the FBI reported, "Fifty-eight loans with a total value of $6.2 million have gone into default, with a loss to the Housing and Urban Development Department of over $1.9 million."
It's the tip of the iceberg. Thanks to lax Bush Administration-approved policies allowing illegal aliens to use "matricula consular cards" and taxpayer identification numbers to open bank accounts, more forms of mortgage fraud have burgeoned. Moneylenders still have no access to a verification system to check Social Security numbers before approving loans.
In an interview about rampant illegal alien home loan fraud, a spokeswoman for the U.S. General Accounting Office told me five years ago: "[C]onsidering the size of Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Houston and other large cities throughout the United States known to be inundated with illegal aliens, I don't think the federal government is willing to expose this problem for financial reasons as well as for fear of political repercussions."
The chickens are coming home to roost. And law-abiding, responsible taxpayers are going to pay for it.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
I was on the radio today and discussed the illegal angle to the mortgage mess and I thought the host was going to have me assassinated. I had the facts, he had the emotions.
bullseye for michelle
Keep ‘em coming!
It’s about time those with a voice connected the dots for all to see!! I’d say that the majority of Americans have NO idea how illegal aliens and the greed by those who pandered to them, have destroyed our economy. And now, Americans will spend billions upon billions to save their arses. In the meantime, our borders are still not effectively secured, immigration laws are unenforced, and when they are, deported illegal aliens simply return within days to commit more crimes against Americans.
worth repeating
“The chickens are coming home to roost. And law-abiding, responsible taxpayers are going to pay for it.”
it’s happened in phx, articles on illegals being “victimized” by high mortgages, az republic likes to play the “victim” angle for everything “undocumented immigrant”
FINALLY!!!! SOMEONE IS STATING THE OBVIOUS!!!
I would think that this is much more important than lipstick on pigs, pregnant teens and the like... but heh America you have the MSM right on your side reporting the truth... (including Bill O’Reilly and Geraldo).
i lived in austin for a year in 2004-05.
i remember reading in the dallas morning news about illegals buying houses in ohio.
wrap your brain around this: in the mid-80s i moved to orange co, ca. illegals arrived by the legion.
crime went up. whites and mexican americans moved out, leaving the elderly homeowners who didn’t move out fast enough.
house prices fell. hud came in and bought the houses and sold them to the illegals for cheap.
the elderly americans lost their housing investments.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
It seems to me that if I give someone a NINJA loan and then sell it, the only way I'll make a profit is if I can misrepresent the loan as being better than it is; even then, my profit wouldn't be all that great given some of my downside risks.
On the other hand, suppose I manage to downplay the risk to some CDS sellers. Doing that would allow me to buy a CDS to go with the loan, making it seem better to the buyer. I could, however, take things further by buying an extra CDS for myself. When the seller defaults as I know he's going to, I can profit handsomely.
Sellers of CDSs can commit fraud by not only ignoring the possibility of systemic risk, but betting on it. If the seller figures that he'll be massively under-capitalized in the event of systemic failure, that will actually reduce the expected value of his risk (since the systemic-failure case he won't stand to lose the full amount of money he's supposed to pay out).
How did those things ever get to be regarded as even remotely reputable?
I know. I live in AZ and that is my really big problem with John. Pandering to those who will never vote for him or can’t vote (legally).
Fortunately, I live in NJ and we haven’t had the problem with illegal immigrants that Calif, Arizona, Georgia, Virginia and other have. But I am aware of the illegal issue with regard to mortgage lending.
Has McCain strengthened his stand on immigration or is he going with the “its good for business” line?
But Baby Bush isn’t responsible for 7 years of unimpeded illegal immigration, is he? Surely not! </SARC SARC SARC SARC>
I bet I could name the very neighborhoods you are thinking of.
“Has McCain strengthened his stand on immigration “
He’s the same amnesty pusher he’s always been. He just doesn’t mention it these days unless he’s talking to one of the la raza groups.
the one i lived in was very nice in costa mesa,,
above hoag hospital in newport beach overlooking the ocean.
there was the dmv high rise.
the 50’s and 60’s homes were over ripe for opportunists.
the elderly were caught unawares.
the democrat judges disregarded costa mesa laws on occupancy.
btt
Malkin is da One! You go Girl!
Our chicks are prettier AND smarter than their sweathogs!
“the democrat judges disregarded costa mesa laws on occupancy.”
And when the city fathers of Costa Mesa desperately tried to help their city the dimwitted Jack Kemp flew out and made sure that the illegals weren’t removed from that HUD housing he ruled over.
What’s Michelle complaining about? We had some cheap lettuce there for awhile. It all balances out.
This is supposed to be from September 22, 2008—yesterday! Doesn’t sound like McCain has changed his tune.
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