Ditocoaf wrote:The fact is, Obama's campaign
chose to produce a 2-minute ad, so he could say more. McCain's campaign
chose to produce a 1/2-minute ad, for greater impact.
My reaction: ahahaha!
That was hilarious! Obama described his thoughts on how to fix the economy, and then encouraged people to actually
read his actual written plan, instead of relying on a 2-minute commercial. It was just him sitting, talking, explaining. McCain's used dramatic cinematography and music, painting him like an action hero, meanwhile saying
nothing about his plans, besides that he will "take on wall street." McCain's may have been 25% as long, but he said maybe 5% as much... and that's generous.
McCain tried to appeal to your gut with a dramatic, concentrated impression of dedication, while Obama actually tried to appeal to your head... which is why McCain wins that round. But maybe I'm just a pessimist.
Obama's ad didn't really address the issue of wall street's shenanigans though. he talked about health care and told how he was going to give a $1000 tax refunds to the middle class. isn't that unrelated to the wall street debacle?
it was filled with fluff and his website isn't really all that detailed.
Obama wrote:Protect Homeownership and Crack Down on Mortgage Fraud
Obama and Biden will crack down on fraudulent brokers and lenders. They will also make sure homebuyers have honest and complete information about their mortgage options, and they will give a tax credit to all middle-class homeowners.
* Create a Universal Mortgage Credit: Obama and Biden will create a 10 percent universal mortgage credit to provide homeowners who do not itemize tax relief. This credit will provide an average of $500 to 10 million homeowners, the majority of whom earn less than $50,000 per year.
* Ensure More Accountability in the Subprime Mortgage Industry: Obama has been closely monitoring the subprime mortgage situation for years, and introduced comprehensive legislation over a year ago to fight mortgage fraud and protect consumers against abusive lending practices. Obama's STOP FRAUD Act provides the first federal definition of mortgage fraud, increases funding for federal and state law enforcement programs, creates new criminal penalties for mortgage professionals found guilty of fraud, and requires industry insiders to report suspicious activity.
* Mandate Accurate Loan Disclosure: Obama and Biden will create a Homeowner Obligation Made Explicit (HOME) score, which will provide potential borrowers with a simplified, standardized borrower metric (similar to APR) for home mortgages. The HOME score will allow individuals to easily compare various mortgage products and understand the full cost of the loan.
* Close Bankruptcy Loophole for Mortgage Companies: Obama and Biden will work to eliminate the provision that prevents bankruptcy courts from modifying an individual's mortgage payments. They believe that the subprime mortgage industry, which has engaged in dangerous and sometimes unscrupulous business practices, should not be shielded by outdated federal law.
mccain wrote:Home Plan
John McCain believes there is nothing more important than keeping alive the American dream of owning a home. Priority number one is to keep well-meaning, deserving home owners who are facing foreclosure in their homes.
John McCain's approach to helping sub-prime or other financially strapped mortgage borrowers is built on sound principles:
* No taxpayer money should bail out real estate speculators or financial market participants who failed to perform due diligence in assessing credit risks. Any assistance for borrowers should be focused solely on homeowners and any government assistance to the banking system should be based solely on preventing systemic risk.
* Any policy of financial assistance should be accompanied by reforms that promote greater transparency and accountability to ensure we never face this problem again.
John McCain has proposed a new "HOME Plan" to provide robust, timely and targeted help to those hurt by the housing crisis. Under his HOME Plan, every deserving American family or homeowner will be afforded the opportunity to trade a burdensome mortgage for a manageable loan that reflects their home's market value.
* Eligibility: Holders of a sub-prime mortgage taken after 2005 who live in their home (primary residence only); can prove creditworthiness at the time of the original loan; are either delinquent, in arrears on payments, facing a reset or otherwise demonstrate that they will be unable to continue to meet their mortgage obligations; and can meet the terms of a new 30 year fixed-rate mortgage on the existing home.
o John McCain's HOME Plan Will Keep 200,000 To 400,000 Families From Losing Their Homes. "But at the same time, McCain is calling for aggressive federal action to help keep 200,000 to 400,000 families from losing their homes. That plan has many of the elements of a proposal by Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., and Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., requiring participating lenders to forgive part of the loan principal and then write a new loan that would be backed by the federal government through the Federal Housing Administration." (Tom Raum, "Everyone's Invited: McCain Economic Plan Draws From Both Parties," Tucson Citizen, 4/17/08)
* How It Works: Individuals pick up a form at any Post Office or download the form over the Internet and apply for a HOME loan. The FHA HOME Office certifies that the individual is qualified, and contacts the individual's mortgage servicer. The mortgage servicer writes down and retires the existing loan, which is replaced by an FHA guaranteed HOME loan from a lender.
* John McCain will bolster groups like Neighborworks America that provide mortgage assistance to homeowners in their communities.
McCain's plan is a little beefier when you compare the two plans side by side written out like this, i think.
I also think that tax payers should not be footing the bill like this. Honestly, the sub prime bullshit was like a land slide waiting to happen. Why the hell did people not refinance before the shit hit the fan anyway?
Pay attention also how Obama keeps saying how HE is going to do this and that. McCain seems to be much more interested in using other peoples ideas to get stuff done. You know that promotes buy-in, right, making things much more likely to get done.
