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Setting the Record Straight: The Three Most
Egregious Claims In The New York Times
Article On The Housing Crisis
The New York Times Reporters Jo Becker, Sheryl
Stolberg, And Stephen Labaton Ignore The Facts
And Place Unfounded Blame On President Bush
And His Administration Over The Current Housing
Crisis
White House News
"Most people can accept that a news story
recounting recent events will be reliant on '20-20
hindsight'. Today's front-page New York Times
story relies on hindsight with blinders on and one
eye closed. The Times' 'reporting' in this story
amounted to finding selected quotes to support a
story the reporters fully intended to write from
the onset, while disregarding anything that didn't
fit their point of view. To prove the point, when
they filed their story, NYT reporters were
completely unfamiliar with the President's prime
time address to the Nation where he laid out in
detail all of the causes of the housing and
financial crises."
- White House Press Secretary Dana Perino,
12/21/08
The New York Times wrongly accuses President
Bush and his Administration of disregarding signs
of danger from Government Sponsored
Enterprises (GSEs) and ignores the President's
prime time address to the Nation where he laid
out in detail all of the causes of the housing and
financial crises, arguing that "as early as 2006,
top advisers to Mr. Bush dismissed warnings from
people inside and outside the White House that
housing prices were inflated and that a
foreclosure crisis was looming." (Jo Becker, Sheryl
Gay Stolberg, Stephen Labaton, "White House
Philosophy Stoked On Mortgage Bonfire," New
York Times, 12/21/08)
The New York Times completely ignores the fact
that while the Administration was pushing for
more transparent lending rules and reining in
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Congress had for
years blocked attempts at stronger regulation
and blocked reform of the Federal Housing
Administration.
House Financial Services Committee Chairman
Barney Frank (D-MA) criticized the President's
warning saying: "these two entities - Fannie Mae
and Freddie Mac - are not facing any kind of
financial crisis ... The more people exaggerate
these problems, the more pressure there is on
these companies, the less we will see in terms of
affordable housing." (Stephen Labaton, "New
Agency Proposed To Oversee Freddie Mac And
Fannie Mae," New York Times, 9/11/03)
Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and
Urban Affairs Chairman Christopher Dodd also
ignored the President's warnings and called on
him to "immediately reconsider his ill-advised"
position. (Eric Dash, "Fannie Mae's Offer To Help
Ease Credit Squeeze Is Rejected, As Critics
Complain Of Opportunism," New York Times,
8/11/07)
Over the past six years, the President and his
Administration have not only warned of the
systemic consequences of failure to reform GSEs
but also put forward thoughtful plans to reduce
the risk that either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac
would encounter such difficulties. President Bush
publicly called for GSE reform at least 17 times in
2008 alone before Congress acted. Unfortunately,
these warnings went unheeded, as the
President's repeated attempts to reform the
supervision of these entities were thwarted by
the legislative maneuvering of those who
emphatically denied there were problems. Many
prominent Democrats, including House Finance
Chairman Barney Frank, opposed any legislation
correcting the risks posed by GSEs.
The New York Times notes the political
contributions of some banks to Republicans,
saying "in the 2004 election cycle, mortgage
bankers and brokers poured nearly $847,000 into
Mr. Bush's re-election campaign, more than triple
their contributions in 2000, according to the
nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics."
The article neglects to acknowledge that political
contributions from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
overwhelmingly supported Democratic officials -
in particular members of Democratic leadership:
Since 1989, Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) has
received $165,400 from Fannie Mae and Freddie
Mac. (Lindsay Renick Mayer, "Fannie Mae And
Freddie Mac Invest In Lawmakers," Center For
Responsive Politics' "Capital Eye" Blog,
www.opensecrets.org, 9/11/08)
Since 1989, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid
(D-NV) has received $77,000 from Fannie Mae
and Freddie Mac. (Lindsay Renick Mayer, "Fannie
Mae And Freddie Mac Invest In Lawmakers,"
Center For Responsive Politics' "Capital Eye" Blog,
www.opensecrets.org, 9/11/08)
Since 1989, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has
received $56,250 from Fannie Mae and Freddie
Mac. (Lindsay Renick Mayer, "Fannie Mae And
Freddie Mac Invest In Lawmakers," Center For
Responsive Politics' "Capital Eye" Blog,
www.opensecrets.org, 9/11/08)
The New York Times wrongly accuses the
President of encouraging reckless lending in order
to expand the Republican base: "For Mr. Bush, it
was part of his vision of an "ownership society,"
in which Americans would rely less on the
government for health care, retirement and
shelter. It was also good politics, a way to court
black and Hispanic voters."
The facts show that, throughout his eight years,
the President was actually encouraging careful
and wise lending and emphasized the obligations
and responsibilities that come with
homeownership. "We've got to be wise about how
we deal with the closing documents and all the
regulations, but also wise about how we help
people understand what it means to own their
home and the obligations and the opportunities."
(President George W. Bush, Remarks On
Homeownership, Atlanta, GA, 6/17/02)
Egregious Claims In The New York Times
Article On The Housing Crisis
The New York Times Reporters Jo Becker, Sheryl
Stolberg, And Stephen Labaton Ignore The Facts
And Place Unfounded Blame On President Bush
And His Administration Over The Current Housing
Crisis
White House News
"Most people can accept that a news story
recounting recent events will be reliant on '20-20
hindsight'. Today's front-page New York Times
story relies on hindsight with blinders on and one
eye closed. The Times' 'reporting' in this story
amounted to finding selected quotes to support a
story the reporters fully intended to write from
the onset, while disregarding anything that didn't
fit their point of view. To prove the point, when
they filed their story, NYT reporters were
completely unfamiliar with the President's prime
time address to the Nation where he laid out in
detail all of the causes of the housing and
financial crises."
- White House Press Secretary Dana Perino,
12/21/08
The New York Times wrongly accuses President
Bush and his Administration of disregarding signs
of danger from Government Sponsored
Enterprises (GSEs) and ignores the President's
prime time address to the Nation where he laid
out in detail all of the causes of the housing and
financial crises, arguing that "as early as 2006,
top advisers to Mr. Bush dismissed warnings from
people inside and outside the White House that
housing prices were inflated and that a
foreclosure crisis was looming." (Jo Becker, Sheryl
Gay Stolberg, Stephen Labaton, "White House
Philosophy Stoked On Mortgage Bonfire," New
York Times, 12/21/08)
The New York Times completely ignores the fact
that while the Administration was pushing for
more transparent lending rules and reining in
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Congress had for
years blocked attempts at stronger regulation
and blocked reform of the Federal Housing
Administration.
House Financial Services Committee Chairman
Barney Frank (D-MA) criticized the President's
warning saying: "these two entities - Fannie Mae
and Freddie Mac - are not facing any kind of
financial crisis ... The more people exaggerate
these problems, the more pressure there is on
these companies, the less we will see in terms of
affordable housing." (Stephen Labaton, "New
Agency Proposed To Oversee Freddie Mac And
Fannie Mae," New York Times, 9/11/03)
Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and
Urban Affairs Chairman Christopher Dodd also
ignored the President's warnings and called on
him to "immediately reconsider his ill-advised"
position. (Eric Dash, "Fannie Mae's Offer To Help
Ease Credit Squeeze Is Rejected, As Critics
Complain Of Opportunism," New York Times,
8/11/07)
Over the past six years, the President and his
Administration have not only warned of the
systemic consequences of failure to reform GSEs
but also put forward thoughtful plans to reduce
the risk that either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac
would encounter such difficulties. President Bush
publicly called for GSE reform at least 17 times in
2008 alone before Congress acted. Unfortunately,
these warnings went unheeded, as the
President's repeated attempts to reform the
supervision of these entities were thwarted by
the legislative maneuvering of those who
emphatically denied there were problems. Many
prominent Democrats, including House Finance
Chairman Barney Frank, opposed any legislation
correcting the risks posed by GSEs.
The New York Times notes the political
contributions of some banks to Republicans,
saying "in the 2004 election cycle, mortgage
bankers and brokers poured nearly $847,000 into
Mr. Bush's re-election campaign, more than triple
their contributions in 2000, according to the
nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics."
The article neglects to acknowledge that political
contributions from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
overwhelmingly supported Democratic officials -
in particular members of Democratic leadership:
Since 1989, Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) has
received $165,400 from Fannie Mae and Freddie
Mac. (Lindsay Renick Mayer, "Fannie Mae And
Freddie Mac Invest In Lawmakers," Center For
Responsive Politics' "Capital Eye" Blog,
www.opensecrets.org, 9/11/08)
Since 1989, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid
(D-NV) has received $77,000 from Fannie Mae
and Freddie Mac. (Lindsay Renick Mayer, "Fannie
Mae And Freddie Mac Invest In Lawmakers,"
Center For Responsive Politics' "Capital Eye" Blog,
www.opensecrets.org, 9/11/08)
Since 1989, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has
received $56,250 from Fannie Mae and Freddie
Mac. (Lindsay Renick Mayer, "Fannie Mae And
Freddie Mac Invest In Lawmakers," Center For
Responsive Politics' "Capital Eye" Blog,
www.opensecrets.org, 9/11/08)
The New York Times wrongly accuses the
President of encouraging reckless lending in order
to expand the Republican base: "For Mr. Bush, it
was part of his vision of an "ownership society,"
in which Americans would rely less on the
government for health care, retirement and
shelter. It was also good politics, a way to court
black and Hispanic voters."
The facts show that, throughout his eight years,
the President was actually encouraging careful
and wise lending and emphasized the obligations
and responsibilities that come with
homeownership. "We've got to be wise about how
we deal with the closing documents and all the
regulations, but also wise about how we help
people understand what it means to own their
home and the obligations and the opportunities."
(President George W. Bush, Remarks On
Homeownership, Atlanta, GA, 6/17/02)
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