Home Girl

The economy has recently been in the gutter because of mortgage lending practices that are Draconian and are sucking the blood from the neck of Americans' dreams for home-ownership. So, it stands to reason that America's Senator would have an idea for her government to fix this huge problem. Here's how she addresses it, I think from the Washington Post online:

According to a preview of her remarks provided by her campaign, Mrs.
Clinton, of New York, will lay out a plan to deal with mortgage lending abuses
and to "preserve the dream of homeownership" at a time of crisis in the mortgage
markets as homeowners default or face foreclosure when their adjustable rates
climb upwards.

Mrs. Clinton's plan, according to the outline her campaign provided,
zeroes in on "unscrupulous brokers." She would require mortgage brokers, in
their dealing with borrowers, to explain that they make more money when
borrowers' mortgage rates and fees are high.

Banking analysts generally note, though, that brokers are only part of a
larger problem: They are lieutenants for the lenders in a mortgage industry that
has until now been eager to extend easy credit to homeowners who may not be
aware of the ultimate costs of their mortgages once their adjustable rates rise.

This is important because, as Americans, we can't be expected to read "the fine print." I mean, who reads the fine print, you know? Nobody I know has the time to read the fine print. Let's be honest, people on the go, people with lives, people with a college education don't read the fine print, THAT'S WHY IT'S THE FINE PRINT!

And America's Senator is the perfect spokesperson for first-time homebuyers because, let me remind you, she's one herself. After living in public housing (wife of the Arkansas Attorney General, wife of the Arkansas Governor, wife of the President) all of her adult life, she finally got enough money to buy a house after signing a record $8 million advance on her book deal with publisher Simon & Schuster. Telling us about her feelings about a certain D.C. college intern is how she was able to afford a home in Chappaqua, N.Y., which is how she was able to become America's Senator - so there's really no downside.