FOA
FOA? That would be "Friends of Angelo," as in Angelo Mozilo, the former CEO of Countrywide Financial. An article in today's Washington Post contained a partial listing of members of Congress (mostly Democrats) who got mortgages from Countrywide under this rather unique designation.
In 2004, Sen. Kent Conrad was hunting for a lender for a $1.07 million mortgage on his vacation home in Bethany Beach, Del., when an old friend handed him the phone number of Angelo Mozilo.
Conrad (D-N.D.) said yesterday that he sees nothing wrong with calling Mozilo, the chief executive of the nation's largest mortgage lender, Countrywide Financial. And the Senate Budget Committee chairman is adamant that he received no special deals.
But by reaching out to Mozilo, Conrad became another VIP enrolled in the "FOA" -- Friends of Angelo -- loan program. ...
Before his company's fall from grace, Mozilo looked for influence in Washington however he could get it, through campaign contributions, high-priced lobbyists and easy lending, not just to power brokers but even to financial journalists. Savings offered under the FOA program do not appear to amount to more than a few hundred or thousand dollars.
The article also listed others in Congress and in the Clinton and Bush administrations who secured loans from Countrywide under this rather unique program. Now, according to the article, there wasn't much of a financial gain involved. In fact, several of the loans were either at or even above prevailing interest rates, but it does appear that the borrowers got through the process rather smoothly, with extraordinary service by the company.
But that isn't the point. The point is that Sen. Conrad got his loan by calling the CEO directly. Not too many of his constituents had Mr. Mozilo's telephone number, and it is likely that even if they did, they would have gotten the kind of treatment that Sen. Conrad (and Sen. Christopher Dodd, and Donna Shalala, and Richard Holbrooke, to mention a few of the other Democratic names listed in the article) got.
Pleading ignorance of the "FOA" designation is ludicrous when the CEO's direct line is on your rolodex. Accepting sizeable campaign donations from that CEO just adds to the awful smell. There are some perks that should just not be exercised.
Maybe those engaged in public service at the national level should be held to the same standards as judges are. They must avoid not only impropriety, but also the appearance of impropriety.
That would be a start.
In 2004, Sen. Kent Conrad was hunting for a lender for a $1.07 million mortgage on his vacation home in Bethany Beach, Del., when an old friend handed him the phone number of Angelo Mozilo.
Conrad (D-N.D.) said yesterday that he sees nothing wrong with calling Mozilo, the chief executive of the nation's largest mortgage lender, Countrywide Financial. And the Senate Budget Committee chairman is adamant that he received no special deals.
But by reaching out to Mozilo, Conrad became another VIP enrolled in the "FOA" -- Friends of Angelo -- loan program. ...
Before his company's fall from grace, Mozilo looked for influence in Washington however he could get it, through campaign contributions, high-priced lobbyists and easy lending, not just to power brokers but even to financial journalists. Savings offered under the FOA program do not appear to amount to more than a few hundred or thousand dollars.
The article also listed others in Congress and in the Clinton and Bush administrations who secured loans from Countrywide under this rather unique program. Now, according to the article, there wasn't much of a financial gain involved. In fact, several of the loans were either at or even above prevailing interest rates, but it does appear that the borrowers got through the process rather smoothly, with extraordinary service by the company.
But that isn't the point. The point is that Sen. Conrad got his loan by calling the CEO directly. Not too many of his constituents had Mr. Mozilo's telephone number, and it is likely that even if they did, they would have gotten the kind of treatment that Sen. Conrad (and Sen. Christopher Dodd, and Donna Shalala, and Richard Holbrooke, to mention a few of the other Democratic names listed in the article) got.
Pleading ignorance of the "FOA" designation is ludicrous when the CEO's direct line is on your rolodex. Accepting sizeable campaign donations from that CEO just adds to the awful smell. There are some perks that should just not be exercised.
Maybe those engaged in public service at the national level should be held to the same standards as judges are. They must avoid not only impropriety, but also the appearance of impropriety.
That would be a start.
Labels: Corruption
posted by Diane at 4:20 AM
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