It turns out that the housing bailout bill really is "exactly what Bank of America and Countrywide wanted." A memorandum dated March 11, 2008 has surfaced, and it seems to support the idea that BofA essentially wrote the bailout section of the bill. "Almost all of BofA's preferences are mirrored in the Dodd-Shelby legislation," Stephen Spruiell writes.
The BofA document even offers tips on how to manipulate the public's reaction to the bill: "We believe that any intervention by the federal government will be acceptable only if it is not perceived as a bail-out of the bond market."
This news should hurt the bill's chances. It has already been tainted by news that its most prominent supporter, senate banking committee chairman Chris Dodd, received massive campaign donations from Bank of America executives and sweetheart loans from Countrywide. The president has to veto the bill on the grounds that it would "unfairly benefit lenders who made bad loans."
BofA-Scripted Bank Bailout Looks Awfully Similar to Dodd-Drafted Housing Bill [The Corner]
Bank Of America To Celebrate Only Being Liable For $40 Billion (And Counting!) Worth Of Countrywide Slip-Ups
A couple dozen more of these $1.27 billion wins and this whole thing might not look like the worst business deal in history after all!
Whistleblowing Bank Of America Quite A Bit More Lucrative Than Working For Bank Of America
Just something to keep in mind. A former Countrywide Financial Corp. manager whose fraud suit contributed to the mortgage industry’s $25 billion settlement with federal and state regulators received about $14.5 million for his efforts, his lawyers said. Kyle Lagow, an appraisal manager for Countrywide from 2004 to 2008, claimed that Countrywide inflated the value of homes to support bigger loans, according to a statement today from Seattle-based law firm Hagens Berman. Charlotte, North Carolina- based Bank of America bought Countrywide in 2008 to save it from collapse as defaults on home loans soared. Lagow’s information helped prompt a $1 billion settlement of Federal Housing Administration claims announced by Bank of America in February, according to the law firm. The sum was included in the nationwide settlement reached that month. [Bloomberg]