Banking Madness
Written by Brian Garst, Posted in Economics & the Economy
Did you think we had learned anything from the subprime mortgage mess? Did you think government would stop pushing for irresponsible behavior? Silly you.
Joseph A. Petrucelli is one of the most cautious bankers in America.
In fact, Petrucelli is so cautious that the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. recently criticized his bank for not lending enough.
The FDIC’s negative review of East Bridgewater Savings Bank’s loan volume is an anomaly in today’s current banking scene as lenders reel from their role in offering too many cruddy mortgage products to borrowers with weak credit.
Still, the FDIC slapped East Bridgewater Savings with a rare “needs to improve” rating after evaluating the bank under the Community Reinvestment Act.
There you have it. A bank that is cautiously making responsible loans and isn’t relying on government to bail it out, “needs to improve.” This is the same Community Reinvestment Act that helped get us into the mess.
Between Barney Frank running around dictating bank behavior, Chris Dodd still being in charge of the banking committee, and the Community Reinvestment Act still being used to bully banks into irresponsible lending, it is utterly apparent that the arsonists have succeeded in their mission to trick the public into thinking that they are actually fire fighters.
Barney Frank Chris Dodd Community Reinvestment Act financial crisis
I serve as Vice President of the Center for Freedom and Prosperity, a non-profit think tank dedicated to preserving tax competition and free markets. This site features my personal views, which are not reflective of CF&P.