I'm staying home today because I'm feeling more than a little under the weather, and I was watching MSNBC waiting for the press conference with President Obama in Ottawa, when suddenly there's a man on my TV "ranting" about the foreclosure plan President Obama laid out. As I watch this man ranting against helping out ordinary people (the same ones he's claiming are in the "silent minority" his rant supposedly inspired), I couldn't help but wonder "what the fuck is this asshole talking about" (please excuse my language, I'm a bit grouchy when I'm sick).
Now I don't watch CNBC, so I don't know anything about this guy. With that being said, he must not have listened to President Obama's speech yesterday. The foreclosure plan is NOT to bailout people who took on more risk than they should have, or who bought a house they couldn't afford and "an extra bathroom." The foreclosure plan is to help people who are keeping up with their payments and doing what they need to do, but under the possible threat of foreclosure because the mortgage is worth more than their house.
We have people losing jobs who have never missed a payment in their lives that don't know who they are going to pay the bills. People who DO still have jobs are worried that they are going to lose them. I saw a poll this morning that said over 60% of people are worried that they won't be able to pay their bills. These people weren't necessarily irresponsible, they were merely caught off guard like everyone else with our economic downturn late last year.
So I'm listening to this rant, and this guy is saying instead that the government should buy the houses after they are foreclosed (as opposed to helping the owners not LOSE the house in the first place), and then sell them to people who "might have a chance to actually prosper in the future"? What is that supposed to mean?
He wants the administration to put up a website to ask people if we want to "subsidize the loser's mortgages"? Really? I have a feeling he'd come out on the losing end of THAT internet poll (and since when are internet polls reliable?)
Now I may be wrong, but I don't remember this asshole ranting against TARP payments, at least not in a way that got any attention. I know something is fishy when this when Drudge is running with it.
So let's look at what Obama actually SAID yesterday:
The plan I'm announcing focuses on rescuing families who have played by the rules and acted responsibly: by refinancing loans for millions of families in traditional mortgages who are underwater or close to it; by modifying loans for families stuck in sub-prime mortgages they can't afford as a result of skyrocketing interest rates or personal misfortune; and by taking broader steps to keep mortgage rates low so that families can secure loans with affordable monthly payments.
[snip]
But I also want to be very clear about what this plan will not do: It will not rescue the unscrupulous or irresponsible by throwing good taxpayer money after bad loans. It will not help speculators who took risky bets on a rising market and bought homes not to live in but to sell. It will not help dishonest lenders who acted irresponsibility, distorting the facts and dismissing the fine print at the expense of buyers who didn't know better. And it will not reward folks who bought homes they knew from the beginning they would never be able to afford. In short, this plan will not save every home.
[snip]
So solving this crisis will require more than resources – it will require all of us to take responsibility. Government must take responsibility for setting rules of the road that are fair and fairly enforced. Banks and lenders must be held accountable for ending the practices that got us into this crisis in the first place. Individuals must take responsibility for their own actions. And all of us must learn to live within our means again.
Where in his speech did he say AT ALL that he's planning on bailing out irresponsible people? What the HELL is that man RANTING about? Did he not LISTEN to the speech? Did he not bother to READ a transcript? Or did he just get on National TV and make an ass of himself?
Of course, the people on MSNBC are talking about how much "support" CNBC has been getting for this disingenuous BS. SMH. And given a choice, I'd much rather bail out my NEIGHBOR to keep him/her from losing their HOME than some ass on Wall St. that was ACTUALLY irresponsible.
UPDATE According to a couple of comments this guy did complain about TARP and really hates ALL bailouts, I don't think that really changes my opinion on his rant, but in the interest of being completely honest, I thought I'd add this update.