Tag Archives: Rep. Barney Frank

Rep. Barney Frank (D-Massachusetts) is stepping up and speaking out in defense of JPMorgan Chase, calling the U.S. government's lawsuit against the financial institution a case of ""no good deed goes unpunished."" New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman filed a suit against JPMorgan on October 1 for the alleged misconduct of Bear Stearns & Co. prior to JPMorgan's acquisition of the failing investment bank, and Frank says he has first-hand knowledge that federal officials urged JPMorgan to ""do a good deed"" by taking over an institution which JPMorgan would never have sought to acquire absent that urging.

Treasury is currently reviewing a proposal to aid distressed homeowners by allowing a short sale of mortgage notes from mortgage-backed securities (MBS) trusts to new investors. The proposal was put forth by American Home Mortgage Servicing. The company says this strategy could be key to unlocking principal reduction modifications, which could save hundreds of thousands of homes from foreclosure and reduce losses for both investors and underwater borrowers.

House Republicans may have succeeded in passing legislation to end federal housing programs that are intended to provide assistance to unemployed homeowners and support efforts to clean up vacant foreclosed homes, but their Democratic counterparts aren't going to take it lying down. Rep. Barney Frank, the top-ranking Democrat of the House Financial Services Committee, has introduced legislation that would require the biggest banks and hedge funds to cough up $2.5 billion to keep those very same programs alive.

Members of the 112th Congress were sworn in just days ago, and already lawmakers are making big waves. Rep. Michele Bachmann introduced legislation Thursday to repeal the Dodd-Frank financial reform bill that calls for the creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to set tighter regulations for mortgage lending and servicing, and outlines new secondary market rules intended to curb risk-taking by mortgage lenders. Congressman Barney Frank rebuked Bachmann's move as a return to the days of irresponsible and over-leveraged lending.

A former Fannie Mae VP has gone public with accusations that the nation's largest mortgage company mishandled its stewardship of the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP). The whistleblower claims that HAMP was impeded by intentional delays and slip-ups because Fannie executives placed their institution's short-term financial interests above helping homeowners avoid foreclosure. A spokesperson for Fannie Mae told DSNews.com that there is ""no merit to [the] allegations.""

Leaders of the House Financial Services Committee say they are looking for ways to recoup the billions of dollars the federal government has sunk into the GSEs over the past two years. Taxpayer support to shore up Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac stands at $145 billion so far, and the tab keeps rising. Rep. Paul Kanjorski says, ""Twenty years ago, we found a way for industry to pay back the sizable U.S. Treasury payments for resolving the savings-and-loan crisis. We can do it again.""