Sorry, Wingnuts: McCain's Campaign Manager Pushed For Boost In Minority Homeownership

[RamboLiberal]

An emerging meme on the right, one that's being championed by the likes of Neil Cavuto and others, is that the mortgage crisis happened not because of deregulation, but because brokers were pressured into making loans to "minorities and risky folks," as Cavuto tastefully put it.

But guess who actively sought to boost minority homeownership? John McCain's campaign manager, Rick Davis.

As The New York Times reported today, Davis was president for several years of the Homeownership Alliance, an industry advocacy organization formed mainly by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The Alliance's core mission is to boost the number of mortgages granted.

But take a look at this picture from the alliance's annual report in 2004, unearthed by a reader, showing Davis at a Congressional reception praising minority homeownership:



"We have an opportunity in the next decade to increase minority homeownership and significantly reduce the minority homeownership gap," Davis is quoted saying here. "The future of the housing market rests heavily on the economic success of minorities. Homeownership is likely to grow faster among minority Americans in the next decade if all the stakeholders in the housing industry work together to make it happen. The Homeownership Alliance is working toward this goal."

http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/09/home_ownership_rick_davis_and.php

[NYC_SKP]

1. Here's Bush from 2002:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/06/20020617.html

"Today, President Bush announced a new goal to help increase the number of minority homeowners by at least 5.5 million before the end of the decade. The President's aggressive housing agenda will help dismantle the barriers to homeownership by providing down payment assistance, increasing the supply of affordable homes, increasing support for self-help homeownership programs, and simplifying the home buying process & increasing education....

...Simplifying the Home Buying Process & Increasing Education. When buying a home today a buyer faces a confusing and complicated process. The President and HUD want to empower homebuyers by simplifying the home buying process so consumers can better understand and benefit from cost savings. The President also wants to expand financial education efforts so that families can understand what they need to do to become homeowners."

Epic FAIL.