A Drop In The Bucket

Today, President Obama announced the long-anticipated settlement between big banks and State Attorneys General. The long anticipated settlement has been in the works for a year.

In today's remarks, the President said:

Banks will put billions of dollars towards relief for families across the nation. They’ll provide refinancing for borrowers that are stuck in high interest rate mortgages. They’ll reduce loans for families who owe more on their homes than they’re worth....And they will deliver some measure of justice for families that have already been victims of abusive practices. ....

This settlement also protects our ability to further investigate the practices that caused this mess. And this is important ... But this settlement is a start.

The last two sentences are important because without your work, this settlement would have been the ending point, not the starting point, of meaningful homeowner relief.

That's why we can't stop now.

The banks will do everything they can to avoid further accountability and relief for families. We also know that in order to provide real and meaningful relief to millions of homeowners, the end result of any investigation must be at least $300 billion in principal reduction and restitution for those who have lost their homes, especially targeted to the most hard hit communities. This will reset the housing market and the economy.

We need to make sure that President Obama:

• Uses the new mortgage fraud task force to conduct a robust and far-reaching investigation that ultimately leads to at least $300 billion in reduced principal on underwater mortgages and $50 billion in restitution for affected homeowners
• Replaces the leadership at the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which has obstructed efforts to reduce principal that would save the taxpayers tens of millions of dollars.
• Makes sure there is a strong, robust enforcement mechanism in the deal announced today, with swift and severe consequences for banks that fail to live up to the terms of the settlement.

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