Yes, The White House Wants a Foreclosure Fraud Whitewash. They’re Not Going to Get It.

[Donnachaidh]

http://news.firedoglake.com/2011/10/12/yes-the-white-house-wants-a-foreclosure-fraud-whitewash-theyre-not-going-to-get-it/

I’m mostly tired of reporting about the foreclosure fraud settlement that’s never going to happen, and you can tell that it’s not a serious effort by virtue of the fact that everyone has moved on except for Charlie Gasparino at Fox Business. And he’s just swallowing banker spin. It’s mildly interesting, though not surprising, that the bankers see the Obama Administration as an ally:

:snip:

Anyway, this is old news. We already knew that the Administration pressured Eric Schneiderman to accept a settlement. We already knew about their talks with other AGs who have since rejected the settlement and the broad liability release. We knew that they wanted to do it quickly, a tragedy that has quickly devolved into farce. The “investigation” started exactly one YEAR ago tomorrow. Since then, we’ve heard deadlines of April and Memorial Day and Labor Day to now, where Tom Miller’s spokesman is saying that they’re “hoping that we can do this by year end.” The remaining AGs hammering out this settlement remind me of the Japanese soldiers holed up in mountain redoubts in the 1950s still fighting World WAr II because nobody told them it ended.

And we still have this assurance from Tom Miller’s office that banks could still face lawsuits in the event of a settlement. It’s a civil and not criminal settlement, they say. Securities fraud will not be a part of the equation, they say. Municipalities could still sue MERS for avoiding recording fees, they say. It’s pretty clear that the settlement is not just about robo-signing or it would have been inked by now. And the discovery that would result from an AG investigation would further criminal charges; being blocked from that discovery would make such charges nearly impossible.

Meanwhile, people who have been wrong about everything like Mark Zandi are back-door boosting a settlement by claiming that the housing market woes are “manageable” for the banks. Google “Zandi” and “housing” and “recovery” and see if you can find how many times he has said that the recovery is either underway or just around the corner since 2007. Google might not be able to calculate the number.

More at the link --

[abelenkpe]

1. They only want the settlement

cause banks tell them they'll go under otherwise and the economy will collapse etc etc etc

So tired of being held hostage by failed banks and financial institutions. We should just nationalize the banks, fire their incompetent overpaid CEOs and run them like the post office. Same for health insurance companies too.

[Swede]

2. Banks May Still Face Fraud, Municipal Lawsuits After Foreclosure Agreement

Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller said in an interview yesterday that any settlement wouldn’t prevent a growing number of municipalities from suing banks for allegedly cheating them out of millions of dollars in filing fees, or individual states from pursuing securities claims against banks.

“They won’t be released. They will go forward,” Miller said about securities claims brought by states. “There will be ongoing litigation” against the banks, he said.

State attorneys general and federal officials have been negotiating a settlement with the largest mortgage servicers, including Bank of America Corp. (BAC), based in Charlotte, North Carolina, and New York-based JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) Officials are seeking an agreement that would fund loan modifications for homeowners and set requirements for how the banks conduct foreclosures.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-10-10/banks-may-still-face-fraud-municipal-claims-under-foreclosure-settlement.html

[rurallib]

5. I'll believe it when I see it. The California AG dropped out for some reason

I used to think Tom Miller was one of the few really uncorruptable people in the country. Now I am not so sure.

[TheWraith]

3. Gosh, FireDogLake reporting more propaganda and steaming bullshit.

I'm shocked. If we can't rely on a fifth-column website whose creator is paid to elect Republicans, who CAN we count on? :eyes:

[chill_wind]

4. Essentially what Yves Smith

seems to be saying.

http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2011/10/california-attorney-general-harris-now-signaling-willingness-to-rejoin-foreclosure-talks.html

The comments by one "John Drake" in the comments section are a pretty good read, too.

Meantime,

More Proof of Federal Coverup of Mortgage Fraud: Robosigner-Equivalents Hired to Review Foreclosure Files in Required Audits

Georgetown law professor and securitization expert Adam Levitin has come upon a real doozy in terms of how banking regulators aren’t even bothering to mount a serious pretense that their much-touted efforts to rein in mortgage abuses are anything more than a coverup for the banks.

http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2011/10/more-proof-of-federal-coverup-of-mortgage-fraud-robosigner-equivalents-hired-to-review-foreclosure-files-in-required-audits.html