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Congressional Leaders Were Stunned by Warnings [“When you listened to him describe it you gulped,"]
New York Times ^

Posted on 09/19/2008 12:01:04 PM PDT by Sub-Driver

Congressional Leaders Were Stunned by Warnings By DAVID M. HERSZENHORN

WASHINGTON — It was a room full of people who rarely hold their tongues. But as the Fed chairman, Ben S. Bernanke, laid out the potentially devastating ramifications of the financial crisis before congressional leaders on Thursday night, there was a stunned silence at first.

Mr. Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. had made an urgent and unusual evening visit to Capitol Hill, and they were gathered around a conference table in the offices of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

“When you listened to him describe it you gulped," said Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York.

As Senator Christopher J. Dodd, Democrat of Connecticut and chairman of the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, put it, “There was a long pause in the room.”

Mr. Schumer added, “History was sort of hanging over it, like this was a moment.”

When Mr. Schumer described the meeting as “somber,” Mr. Dodd cut in. “Somber doesn’t begin to justy the words,” he said. “We have never heard language like this.”

(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Front Page News; Government
KEYWORDS: 110th; banks; bernanke; chrisdodd; congress; economicpolicy; economy; fed; govwatch; housingbubble; mortgage; pelosi; schumer
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To: Sub-Driver
Among the potential steps Congress can take include approving legislation to allow bankruptcy judges to modify the terms of primary mortgages — authority that the bankruptcy laws do not currently allow and that the banking industry has strenuously opposed.

Nobody should give a crap at this point what the banking industry opposes. It's like a preschooler who keeps playing with matches despite lectures and time-outs, and then moves on to actually starting fires around the house, howling "I do NOT need a spanking and I do NOT need a nanny!"

21 posted on 09/19/2008 12:10:07 PM PDT by GovernmentShrinker
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To: goldstategop

The liberal leftist socialist mindset never ceases to amaze me.

They maneuver us into this mess with pie in the sky loans for people who couldn’t service them, then stand there with their jaws on the floor when what any sane person knew would happen as a result does.

How does a Democrat get up every morning, look at him/her self in the mirror, and live with it?


22 posted on 09/19/2008 12:10:36 PM PDT by DoughtyOne (McCain, the Ipecac president... Obama the strychnine president...)
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To: Master of Orion
I wonder what Barney Frank had to say?

Nothing. His mouth was full.

23 posted on 09/19/2008 12:10:54 PM PDT by dead (I've got my eye out for Mullah Omar.)
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To: Sub-Driver

Normally the Democrat response would be to hold a series of investigations but they know how many Democrats are on the boards of these companies and how many have ties to their campaigns.


24 posted on 09/19/2008 12:10:56 PM PDT by weegee (Obama's a uniter?"I want you to argue with them (friends,neighbors,Republicans) & get in their face")
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To: Vince Ferrer

They don’t say that. It is worse then neglect, they created this mess. The libs stopped legislation that could of avoided this.


25 posted on 09/19/2008 12:11:26 PM PDT by Steve Van Doorn (*in my best Eric cartman voice* 'I love you guys')
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To: Master of Orion

...mmmmmfffle...mmmmbbbll...mmmmbbbffff

Seems he has someone, oops, something in his mouth.


26 posted on 09/19/2008 12:11:27 PM PDT by Cletus.D.Yokel (Fannie/Freddie are Obama's Michael Millken.)
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To: Sub-Driver

“We have never heard language like this.”

wow, spoken like true dumbed down drunks who never knew outside Plato’s cave of Marxism.


27 posted on 09/19/2008 12:11:58 PM PDT by JudgemAll (control freaks, their world & their problem with my gun and my protecting my private party)
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To: Red Badger
Hey, Chuckie - isn't that what your party has always wanted - the economy in the tank? So why don't you guys block the bailout - it will get Obama elected in a snap!

"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

28 posted on 09/19/2008 12:12:22 PM PDT by goldstategop (In Memory Of A Dearly Beloved Friend Who Lives In My Heart Forever)
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To: Sub-Driver
“When you listened to him describe it you gulped," said Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York.

It's to bad you didn't swallow your tongue, Chuck.

29 posted on 09/19/2008 12:13:07 PM PDT by raybbr (You think it's bad now - wait till the anchor babies start to vote!)
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To: perfect_rovian_storm

I get the picture in my mind from “It’s a Wonderful Life” when the run on the banks starts and Jimmy Stewart has to postpone his honeymoon and Mr. Potter buys the bank......................


30 posted on 09/19/2008 12:13:12 PM PDT by Red Badger (I'm gonna use "Sarah!" from NOW ON since Hillary uses "Hillary!"......)
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To: goldstategop

31 posted on 09/19/2008 12:14:24 PM PDT by Red Badger (I'm gonna use "Sarah!" from NOW ON since Hillary uses "Hillary!"......)
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To: Master of Orion

I wonder what Barney Frank had to say?

Did you mean “ I wonder what Barney Frank had to spray”?


32 posted on 09/19/2008 12:14:29 PM PDT by nclaurel (I think therefore I vote Republican.)
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To: Sub-Driver

Fools, fools and damned fools.

The Socialists all know very well what they are doing and where it will lead the country.

The biggest problem is stupid people who proclaim they are conservatives acting like the other side is so stupid they don’t understand what they are doing or the effects it will or is having on the country.

Hitler took over Germany when the economy was in the tank, same with Stalin and many other Left-wing fruit cakes.

Wake up, they KNOW what they are doing!

Admit that one point and everything else will start to become clear.


33 posted on 09/19/2008 12:15:34 PM PDT by stockpirate (Bitter white trash clinging to God and guns. Sarah Palin - the trilla from Willsila)
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To: goldstategop
“You have the credit lines in America, which are the lifeblood of the economy, frozen.” Mr. Schumer said. “That hasn’t happened before. It’s a brave new world. You are in uncharted territory, but the one thing you do know is you can’t leave them frozen or the economy will just head south at a rapid rate.”

Notice the pronoun he uses? It's not "us" or "we" it's "you". He's doesn't feel any responsibility toward this at all.

34 posted on 09/19/2008 12:15:52 PM PDT by raybbr (You think it's bad now - wait till the anchor babies start to vote!)
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To: nclaurel

Barney gulped and swallowed.


35 posted on 09/19/2008 12:16:15 PM PDT by ozzymandus
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To: goldstategop

Obama is up to his ears in this mess, as are Dodd, Franks, Schumer and all the rest of the Dems. They KNOW THEY ARE SCREWED!..........


36 posted on 09/19/2008 12:16:21 PM PDT by Red Badger (I'm gonna use "Sarah!" from NOW ON since Hillary uses "Hillary!"......)
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To: Sub-Driver

I wonder if Schumer or Dodd have apologized to Senator Bunning yet.


37 posted on 09/19/2008 12:17:55 PM PDT by Texas Songwriter
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To: Sub-Driver

These imbeciles better start falling on their swords before any criminal proceedings are started. I think in the coming weeks, Americans will have lost all their patience with these bozos and their stupid , Wow didn’t see that coming attitude. Get out of Dodge and don’t come back.


38 posted on 09/19/2008 12:18:05 PM PDT by Master of Orion
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To: perfect_rovian_storm

What it means is that they REALLY screwed up. Not just raised taxes a bit too high screwed up, but created the perfect storm that could spiral out of control into the Greater than the last Great Depression and they are not sure what they can do to fix it or even if they can fix it.

Through shear stupidity and the desire to buy as many votes as possible, they practically forced lenders to make loans to people who had absolutely no way to pay them back. Loans were often made to people who had no verifiable income and no assets. There is even a story floating around about a illegal alien woman WITHOUT A JOB who was given a $1 MILLION loan for a home in California!

The result was a housing bubble that was bound to burst rather quickly, causing plummeting housing prices as hundreds of thousands of homes went on the market with no buyers. Even if they could find a buyer, they would have to take a 50% loss in many cases. Now the feds are talking of buying all that bad debt, probably for full face value. Now you and I get to pay for houses which we can never live in which will probably be given to “favored minorities” for pennies on the dollar.


39 posted on 09/19/2008 12:19:45 PM PDT by Blood of Tyrants (G-d is not a Republican. But Satan is definitely a Democrat.)
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To: dead

Pelosi went on Vacation yesterday, in keeping with her nature of doing nothing. Keep her jet filled up.


40 posted on 09/19/2008 12:19:52 PM PDT by Texas Songwriter
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