With Friends Like Angelo . . .

[Woodmonkey]

Time and again, the Senate is bedeviled by its own clubbiness, its lost sensitivity to how ordinary people live their lives. So it is with Christopher Dodd and Kent Conrad, who turned up on the “Friends of Angelo” V.I.P. list at Countrywide Financial Corporation.

Countrywide, a home-loan powerhouse, figures prominently in the subprime mortgage crisis, which has put hundreds of thousands of Americans at risk of losing their homes. The revelations about Mr. Dodd, Democrat of Connecticut, and Mr. Conrad, Democrat of North Dakota, are particularly troubling since the two senators are principals in trying to pass emergency legislation to address the damage from the mortgage crisis.

The V.I.P. list is maintained by Angelo Mozilo, Countrywide’s chief executive, much the way canny restaurateurs reserve special tables to indulge lawmakers. The list became radioactive when James Johnson, who apparently benefited from favorable mortgage terms from Countrywide, had to quit as the vetter of vice presidential candidates for Senator Barack Obama — a prime critic of Countrywide’s dealings.

Mr. Conrad says he was not aware that a simple telephone introduction to Mr. Mozilo had led to cut-rate treatment. After the details surfaced, he quickly donated his $10,700 windfall to charity. Mr. Dodd says he was aware of his V.I.P. status when he sought two loans from Countrywide but thought it was a mere courtesy. Portfolio.com reported that he received reduced interest rates that could save him tens of thousands of dollars. Mr. Dodd says he did not benefit financially.

The Senate ethics committee has opened an investigation to see whether gift rules have been violated. The trouble is, that throws the matter back to the clubby world of the Senate. Given its track record, it is hard to believe the committee will find that Mr. Dodd and Mr. Conrad acted improperly.

It’s not even clear that the Senate these days is in touch enough to understand how terrible this home-loan back-scratching looks. Senator Conrad said that of 10 or so mortgages he obtained over the years, “in every one of those instances I talked with the No. 1 or No. 2 person” at the lender. Just like the rest of us.

The Source

[leobold1]

I talk with the No. 1 and No. 2 person at any lender.

The No. 1 person I talk to is a computer which takes me to the No. 2 person, the nameless phone personage who enters the information into the computer to separate me from my money.

Then I speak to the No. 3 person, who tries (and almost always fails) to fix what the No. 1 and No. 2 person screwed up.