Van Hollen And Walker sharing chuckles
On February 8, The Legislative Fiscal Bureau (LFB) released new revenue and spending estimates projecting a $208 million shortfall after a $273 million drop in revenue projections for the current biennium.
It was the same day that the U.S. government announced a $25 billion settlement with Bank of America, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and Ally Financial over charges of systemic and widespread mortgage fraud with 49 states, including Wisconsin. Many have found that it’s actually a sweetheart deal where homeowners who lost their home would receive a one-time cash payment of up to $2,000 as compensation. Wisconsin was allocated about $140 million to help those who lost their home to nefarious banking actions.
So what does Scott Walker do with his pal Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen when facing the reality that the Act 10 legislation is not working? With millions in budget deficits even as Walker continues to fund raise in friendly GOP venues bragging (actually lying) that he has balanced the state budget without raising taxes, it’s the poor and working class families that will have to take another huge hit due to Walker’s incompetence. The ultimate irony is that Walker grabbed this federal money as quickly as he could to cover up for his failure to balance the budget while he turned away hundreds of millions in federally allocated funds in the past.
Wisconsin plans to use about $26 million of its $140 million share of a national mortgage settlement to help plug the state’s budget hole — a move Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett on Friday called “unconscionable.”
Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen’s office made the decision in consultation with Gov. Scott Walker to use most of the $31.6 million paid directly to the state to balance the budget rather than to help the thousands of Wisconsin residents who have lost their homes to fraudulent mortgage practices.
Local homeowner advocates also were reeling from the decision Friday. “I’m disappointed that the much-needed funds will not be used as intended for programs that are on the front lines, working with homeowners who are trying to save their homes from foreclosure,” said Ellen Bernards, a nonprofit financial educator and co-chair of the Dane County Foreclosure Prevention Taskforce.
Besides this action taking funds away from homeowners who were victims of fraud due to banksters and and their Mortgage-backed Securities industry, this is a complete reversal of Walker’s previous opposition to using legal settlements to close budget gaps.
Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin sent a letter to Scott Walker and Van Hollen expressing her outrage at seeing how they wanted to deflect money intended to provide relief to victims of mortgage fraud to meet a state budget shortfall.
As a result of the $25 billion settlement between the federal government, 49 states and the District of Columbia, and the nation’s five largest mortgage servicers, Wisconsin will receive an estimated $140 million intended to provide direct relief for affected homeowners, refinancing benefits for eligible borrowers, and remediation programs and services. This settlement represents a good first step in providing needed assistance to defrauded homeowners and reforming our broken mortgage system.
It is shocking and disappointing that you would divert this money from homeowners who desperately need assistance. As you know, the housing crisis has had a significant impact on Wisconsin families and a chilling effect on our state’s economy. As Attorney General Van Hollen has noted, the Wisconsin foreclosure rate has increased 340 percent from 2000 to 2010. Moreover, many more Wisconsin homeowners are at risk of foreclosure because they now owe more than the value of their homes.
Walker has continued to break his promise of raiding funds for other purposes. On his web site when he ran for governor, he specifically stated:
End the practice of raiding segregated state funds to pay for other programs. If taxpayer revenue is collected for a specific purpose such as building and maintaining roads, it should be used for that purpose and that purpose only.
Granted, as is Walker’s usual behavior pattern, he will blame someone else, make another tired excuse or just lie like a conman that he never did anything wrong. Fox News will give him a big fat kiss.
Walker can always count on escaping to Chicago for $5,000-per-table fundraisers while avoiding being governor and under duress by the FBI in their expanding investigation into his pay-for-play criminal routine.
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