| Congressman Eric Massa was on the receiving end of a lot of criticism when he voted against the first version of the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act of 2009.
Massa's reasoning for voting against the first measure was that it didn't do enough for his district and Western New York. That rationable wasn't well received, as many questioned why Massa would vote against a bill that would do so much for the mortgage crisis throughout the country.
Today, the House passed the revised version of the Helping Families Save Their Homes Act of 2009. While the first vote was mostly along party lines (only seven Republicans supported that measure), this measure was supported by 367 representatives, including 123 Republicans.
This time, Massa was one of those who voted for the bill. He credited the Senate for coming up with a more bi-partisan and better bill.
"Because of pressure from moderates in the Senate, we were able to modify this legislation and pass a truly bipartisan bill to help regulate the mortgage industry and help families stay in their homes," said Congressman Eric Massa. "Because the Senate was able to remove all cram-down provisions from the bill to prevent judges from unilaterally altering contracts, I was able to support this bill. With the inclusion of key provisions, the benefits of this legislation will be equally available to the 29th Congressional District and areas throughout the country. I firmly believe in voting against a bad bill to get a good one, and that's exactly what happened today."
The bill that was passed today is still a very good bill. Massa acknowledged that and chose to vote for it, knowing that it would be very beneficial for his district and for his country. Voting against the first bill because of the minimal impact on his district was seen as a poor excuse the last time, but this time Massa recognized the strength of this bill and supported it. |
