Hey, where's that mortgage crisis relief we keep hearing about

So where is the housing bill that Congress is supposed to pass to help homeowners caught up in the subprime disaster? Bush is spouting off the talking points left and right, scolding Congress for not taking action.

Turns out things are stopped up in the Senate because Democrats don’t want to compromise with Republicans. The bill is waiting to be voted on and it would allow bankruptcy judges to reset mortgages on primary residences. It would also provide $4 billion for local communities to buy and refurbish foreclosed properties; provide $200 million for counseling to help homeowners avoid foreclosure; give tax breaks for the homebuilding industry; and improve loan disclosure and transparency.

Both sides agree that this is a good approach, so what’s the lack of bipartisanship? Well, it turns out that because the bill would help homeowners facing foreclosure, the Republicans are considering that a Democratic demand, so they want their own demand met. And what would their demand be? Why, to make Bush’s tax cuts for the very wealthy permanent.

That’s right, the GOP is preventing the government from helping the folk hurt by the crisis of their financial policy’s making, in order to gain political leverage to further subsidize the further enriching of the very rich. Nice.

But for the people, there is still hope. There are enough GOP Senators facing reelection this November that just enough might side with the people to break the GOP filibuster. Then we have to hope that Bush won’t demand a veto-proof majority to get people help.