| In case you had any doubts that the process by which the big banks, the Obama administration and the state AGs are trying desperately to give the fraudsters another "get out of jail free" card isn't pretty much thoroughly corrupt, there's this. Iowa AG Tom Miller has kicked Eric Schneiderman (and therefore New York as well) from the group of AGs negotiating what is sure to be a whitewash settlement with the very criminals who screwed borrowers, investors and everyone in between all because it would appear that Schneiderman was the highest profile AG who actually seemed to give a damn about making that settlement worthwhile to anyone but the banksters. Incredible, yet totally predictable.
New York Is Removed From State Foreclosure Group After Voicing Concerns
The New York Attorney General's office was removed from a group of state attorneys general that is working on a nationwide foreclosure settlement with U.S. banks, according to a state official.
New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who has raised concern about terms of a possible deal, was removed from the executive committee of state attorneys general, according to an e-mail today from Iowa Assistant Attorney General Patrick Madigan.
Geoff Greenwood, a spokesman for Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller, didn't immediately return a phone call seeking comment. Miller is helping to lead negotiations with the banks.
A statement from Schneiderman's office didn't specifically address the removal.
"The attorney general is committed to a comprehensive resolution that will provide homeowners meaningful relief to stay in their homes, allow the housing market to begin to recover, and get our economy moving again," according to an e- mail from spokesman Danny Kanner. "While we will continue to work with our federal and state counterparts to achieve those goals, ongoing investigations by attorneys general cannot be shut down by efforts to settle quickly and those responsible must be held accountable."
For some context, remember that Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller saw his campaign contributions from the financial sector increase by a factor of 88(!) after he was made the chief negotiator of this settlement. That's not a typo.
Best Way to Raise Campaign Money? Investigate Banks
A hilarious report has come out courtesy of the National Institute of Money in State Politics, showing that Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller - who is coordinating the investigation into the banks' improper mortgage dealings - increased his campaign contributions from the finance sector this year by a factor of 88! He has raised $261,445 from finance, insurance and real estate contributors since he announced that he was going to be coordinating the investigation into improper foreclosure practices. That is 88 times as much as they gave him not over last year, but over the previous decade.
This is about as perfect an example of how American politics works as you'll ever see. This foreclosure issue is a monstrous story that is somehow escaping national headlines; essentially, all of the largest banks in the country have been engaged in an ongoing fraud and tax evasion scheme that among other things has resulted in many hundreds of billions in investor losses, and hundreds of thousands of improper foreclosures. Last week, the 14 largest mortgage lenders a group that includes bailout all-stars like Citigroup, Bank of America and Wells Fargo, managed to negotiate a settlement with the federal government that will mandate some financial relief to homeowners who have been victims of improper foreclosure practices. It's unclear yet exactly what damages and fines will be involved in the federal settlement, or how many homeowners will be affected. But certainly there are some who believe the federal settlement was a political end-run around the states' efforts to extract their own deal from the banks.
Corrupt to the core.
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