This is scheduled to be broadcast live tonight at 8pm on C-SPAN (link). Some pretty big names involved including House GOP Conference Chair Adam Putnam (R-FL), House Democratic Caucus Chair Rahm Emmanuel (D-IL), and our very own Eric Cantor (R-VA), the GOP’s Chief Deputy Whip.
The House Democratic Caucus and the House Republican Conference, in cooperation with the Democratic Leadership Council and the Congressional Institute, announced today that they will host the first in a series of debates between bipartisan groups of lawmakers on Monday.
The kickoff of “Congress Debates” will take place at the Jack Morton Auditorium at George Washington University. The topic will be the U.S. economy; according to the press release, the debates are meant “to foster bipartisan debate and discussion of the most important issues facing the country.”
In the lineup for Monday’s crossfire include: Reps. Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill.; Adam Putnam, R-Fla.; Robert Andrews, D-N.J.; Eric Cantor, R-Va.; Artur Davis, D-Ala.; Steve Israel, D-N.Y.; Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash.; and Paul Ryan, R-Wis. The debate will be moderated by Atlantic Media Political Director Ronald Brownstein.
Filed under: National Politics
Just finished watching the debate. In the closing statement for the Republicans, Eric Cantor gave a perfect example of his party’s abdication of responsibility. He criticized the Democrats’ call for prudent regulation to prevent disasters like the subprime mortgage crisis. He said that states, rather than the federal government, should “regulate what goes on in their economies”. Eric Cantor will be surprised to learn that, in fact, that is exactly what the Bush administration prevented states from doing!
In 2002, as the predatory lending that ultimately gave us the subprime mortgage crisis took off, several states attempted to enact legislation to address the looming disaster. They tried to pass laws that would make buyers in the secondary mortgage market liable for loans deemed predatory when they went belly up. This effectively reduced the flow of credit to lenders who were unwilling to abide by the state’s laws against predatory loans. While this raised the cost of borrowing for some residents, the states recognized the need for protection against predatory lending and increased foreclosures. Big Wall Street banks, however, saw things differently. They wanted to keep the subprime market going and prevailed on the Bush Treasury Department to nullify the state laws. What the states saw as market correcting reforms, the Bush Treasury Department saw as “impediments …to legitimate subprime credit”.
As Eric Cantor rails against regulation and oversight, he should be mindful that government has a role to play in protecting the consumer as well as corporations.