Subject: [big campaign] McCain¹s Mortgage Plan Influenced By 53 Lobbyists From Industry, $3.8 Million In Industry Contributions
From: David Miller <[email-masked]>
To: [email-masked]
Date: Fri, 10 Oct 2008 12:44:42 -0400
List-Id: <bigcampaign.googlegroups.com>

A PRESS RELEASE FROM CAMPAIGN MONEY WATCH
 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, October 10, 2008
 
CONTACT
David Miller, Communications Manager
(202) 448-6154
 
McCain¹s Mortgage Plan Influenced By 53 Lobbyists From Industry, $3.8
Million In Industry Contributions
 
         Washington, D.C.  Campaign Money Watch, a nonpartisan campaign
finance watchdog group, today criticized Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) for putting
forward a $300 billion plan that he claims would help struggling homeowners,
but according to news reports would benefit the mortgage lending industry
that has given him $3.8 million in campaign contributions and the 53
industry lobbyists staffing, advising or raising money for his presidential
bid. The 53 lobbyists have made $36.9 million from the lending industry in
the last ten years.
 
            In a proposal announced during Tuesday¹s presidential debate,
McCain said the government should buy up troubled loans at face value, with
the government issuing a new federally guaranteed loan in its place. McCain
said this would help Americans facing foreclosure keep their homes, but a
report in today¹s Wall Street Journal indicates the plan would ³make winners
out of investors  including predatory mortgage lenders.²
 
            ³As John McCain travels to Wisconsin and Minnesota today,
homeowners around the country are looking for help and leadership on the
economic crisis,² said David Donnelly, director of Campaign Money Watch.
²But as we learn more about his proposal, we see that there is plenty to
help his donors, but little for places like Minnesota, where foreclosures
are up 49 percent in the past year, or in Wisconsin, where 2,226 homes are
in some stage of foreclosure.
 
³Before John McCain utters one more word about cronyism, he ought to look at
the glass house from which lobbyists run his campaign,² Donnelly continued.
 
            A Campaign Money Watch analysis of data from the nonpartisan
Center for Responsive Politics found that, since 1989, McCain has received
$844,701 from banks and lending institutions, $231,115 from mortgage bankers
and brokers and $2,754,359 from commercial banks and bank holding companies.
Meanwhile, lobbyists working to help McCain pulled in $36,878,500 in fees
from the mortgage lending industry in the past ten years.
 
            Fourteen of these lobbyists have received $8.1 million from
Fannie Mae, and 16 lobbyists have made $12.8 million from Freddie Mac. In
addition, Freddie Mac paid nearly half a million dollars in undisclosed
payments to the lobbying firm of McCain campaign manager Rick Davis.
 
            ³John McCain¹s retreat on his mortgage proposal has all the
markings of a special interest deal,² Donnelly continued ³Say one thing to
voters, but then let the lobbyists and big donors write the fine print. It¹s
ideas like this that demonstrate the grip big money donors and powerful
lobbyists have on Washington  and the need for the comprehensive campaign
finance reforms John McCain has rejected.²
 
            A full fact sheet on John McCain¹s mortgage industry campaign
contributions and lobbyists can be found at
http://www.campaignmoney.org/mccainmortgage.
 
            Campaign Money Watch is a project of the nonpartisan Public
Campaign Action Fund. Earlier this year, it launched a Web site,
http://www.McCainsLobbyists.com, highlighting the connections between McCain
and the lobbyists who advise, staff and raise money for his campaign. The
organization works to hold politicians who are against comprehensive
campaign finance reform accountable for where they get their political
donations.
 
### 
-- 
David Miller
Communications/Web Manager
Public Campaign Action Fund/Campaign Money Watch
1828 L St. NW #250
Washington, DC 20036
(202) 448-6154

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