Finally!

[GCJim]

One more piece of food for thought. Where do you think the power REALLY lies, folks? Fascinating reading. [Bold is mine].

"So cities like Cleveland sought to take action themselves. In 2001 Mayor Jackson prodded the city council to pass an antipredatory lending act that would have "slowed the Mark Kelloggs down," says Rokakis. But within a year the state, heavily lobbied by Ohio banks like National City, stepped in to void the local law, saying authority lay with the governor and legislature in Columbus. Then the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued a pre-emption order saying the states did not have the authority to enforce laws against national banks. (OCC spokesman Robert Garsson counters that states are the ones that oversee "nonbanks" like Argent.) When the Feds and state officials tied the hands of the locals, Rokakis says, "it was clear this was the Wild West, and there's no sheriff in town. If you're a lender, there's nobody who can stop you. The only difference is that in the old days, people robbed the banks. Now the banks were robbing the people."

 

[James R]

At this point, imo, blame is secondary as to what needs to be done to make it right for now and the future. Hopefully, it will be something like the IVPI or at least making pressuring appraisers a serious offense that will be enforced.

 

[Hamlet]

Fraud needs to be severely punished. Don't tell me that the players in these schemes did not know what they were doing. It encouraged the worst element in this industry and brought in a few more scums just for good measure. No one who lies can claim innocence.

Mr. Rokakis is absolutely correct when he says that the lenders who participated in this were robbing the people and it is clear that the government did nothing to stop it despite the efforts of local authorities.

Disgusting.