Liar Loans, Rising Sea Levels and Gambling Online

Democrats in Congress quarrel over new bankruptcy rules for homeowners.

Newspaper headlines claim that sea levels are rising twice as fast as before.

Finance Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-MA) announces new efforts to repeal federal restrictions on gambling online.

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1. BUSINESS 

Democrats in Congress quarrel over new bankruptcy rules for homeowners.

CEI Expert Available to Comment: Special Projects Counsel Hans Bader on how the government is rewarding so-called “liar loans”: 

“In an unrecorded voice vote, the House of Representatives voted down a proposed amendment to keep people who lied on their loan applications from receiving federal bailout money. The vote was unrecorded so that liberal lawmakers in conservative districts (who camouflage themselves as supposedly-conservative ‘Blue Dog’ Democrats) could hide their vote from their constituents. The stimulus package funds groups like ACORN, which helped spawn the mortgage crisis by promoting ‘liar loans,’ and which has an extensive history of financial fraud and vote fraud.” 

 

2. ENVIRONMENT

Newspaper headlines claim that sea levels are rising twice as fast as before.

CEI Expert Available to Comment: Director of Energy & Global Warming Policy Myron Ebell on what the story actually said

“The story was headlined, ‘Sea levels rising twice as fast as predicted.’ The first sentence did not agree with the headline: ‘Sea levels are predicted to rise twice as fast as was forecast by the United Nations only two years ago…’ That is, the soothsayers have read their chicken entrails again and decided that their previous divinations were not dire enough. This has nothing to do with actual sea level rise. For the past several years, sea level rise has been below the average rate of the twentieth century, which in total was about seven inches.” [emphasis added] 

 

3. TECHNOLOGY

Finance Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-MA) announces new efforts to repeal federal restrictions on gambling online.

CEI Expert Available to Comment: Policy Analyst Michelle Minton on the increasing number of people calling on Congress to reform laws on Internet gambling: 

“Since its passage, an ever increasing number of academics, politicians, and industry members have come out against the [Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006]. The arguments of those opposing UIGEA have varied, but a popular and effective argument in light of the economic crisis is the potential for tax revenue that congress might draw from the lucrative online gaming industry. Barney Frank who will reintroduce a measure to repeal UIGEA, legalize and tax internet gaming as any other legitimate business, again had principled words for his fellow lawmakers using tax revenue as an excuse.” 

 

 

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