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555 Dirksen Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Ph: 202.224.6342
Fax: 202.224.1100
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Raleigh Office:
310 New Bern Avenue
Suite 122
Raleigh, NC 27601
Ph: 919.856.4630
Toll Free: 866.420.6083
Fax: 919.856.4053
Salisbury Office:
225 North Main Street
Suite 304
Salisbury, NC 28144
Ph: 704.633.5011
Toll Free: 866.420.6084
Fax: 704.633.2937
Western Office:
401 North Main Street
Suite 200
Hendersonville, NC 28792
Ph: 828.698.3747
Fax: 828.698.1267
Eastern Office:
306 South Evans Street
Greenville, NC 27835
Ph: 252.329.1093
Fax: 252.329.1097
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Press Releases
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DOLE: STOP DELAYING SENATE HEARINGS ON WALL STREET TURMOIL
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September 18th, 2008 - Washington, D.C. - Today U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole wrote to Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd and Ranking Member Richard Shelby and made the following statement regarding the Banking Committee’s failure to hold timely hearings on recent federal actions related to the ongoing turmoil on Wall Street.
“In the past two weeks, the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department have spent at least 300 billion taxpayer dollars to bail out or loan money to private enterprises, and the American people deserve to know that their hard earned money is being spent wisely, effectively and only out of absolute necessity,” said Dole.
“While I understand that all parties involved in these discussions, especially the Treasury Secretary and the Federal Reserve Chairman, have been heavily engaged with the business of their respective institutions, they are employed by the taxpayers and obliged to answer to them. It is also critically important for the Congress to hold substantive hearings to determine what regulatory changes need to be made to prevent future economic crises.”
The leadership of the Senate Banking Committee, of which Dole is a member, planned and later cancelled a hearing scheduled for Tuesday, September 16 on the recent government takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Then, Committee leadership scheduled a hearing on recent bank failures and the response of federal regulators for Thursday, September 18, only to later cancel it. Another hearing slated for Thursday, September 18, focusing on improving accounting regulations, was also cancelled. After much confusion and delay, the Banking Committee leadership has now scheduled a hearing for Tuesday, September 23 focusing on turmoil in the housing and credit markets and related government actions.
“In addition to hearing from the Administration and federal regulators, I also firmly believe that the American people deserve to hear from the CEOs of the financial institutions that have threatened the solvency of the global financial system and imposed tremendous liabilities on the taxpayers,” said Dole. “These CEOs need to answer for their mismanagement, and provide Congress with a detailed accounting of what went wrong and how we can effectively regulate against a repeat occurrence.”
“And I absolutely demand to hear from the ousted CEOs of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac who spent millions of dollars lobbying against the reforms I proposed to help prevent this crisis long before it started.”
Background
In the wake of Fannie and Freddie’s collapse, Dole helped introduce legislation to prohibit the payment of multi-million dollar “golden parachute” severance packages to the ousted CEOs of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The Federal Housing Finance Agency soon after responded that there would be no lavish compensation for these executives.
Dole also helped introduce legislation to permanently ban Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s questionable lobbying practices.
In 2003, after it was revealed that Freddie Mac had misstated its earnings, Dole helped introduce legislation to strengthen oversight of the Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs). Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac responded in full force, dispatching an army of lobbyists to Capitol Hill to oppose the bill. In 2004, their lobbying tab totaled $26 million, and in 2005, it exceeded $24 million.
Dole helped reintroduce the GSE reform bill in the 109th Congress, and in July 2005 it was approved by the Senate Banking Committee but never considered by the full Senate. In the 110th Congress, Dole reintroduced the bill again with Sens. Chuck Hagel, Mel Martinez and John Sununu.
In response to the housing and mortgage crisis, Congress approved and the President signed into law in July 2008 a housing bill that created a stronger GSE regulator and provided the Treasury Department the authority to place Fannie and Freddie under conservatorship. Earlier this month, the Treasury Department used its new authority, and Fannie and Freddie are effectively under new leadership and have temporarily ceased lobbying activities, and their respective Foundations’ assets are under review.
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30th - Senate Approves Dole Measures to Fund Initiatives that Save Troops’ Lives, Prevent Injuries
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27th - Dole Helps Pass Critical Tax Relief Package
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26th - Dole Statement on Administration’s Proposed Rescue Plan
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26th - Dole Announces $57.7 Million to Assist N.C. Communities Struggling with Foreclosures
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25th - Dole, Burr Propose Solutions to Help Alleviate, Prevent Gas Shortages
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24th - Dole Lauds Expiration of OCS Moratorium, Calls for Permanent Repeal
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23rd - Dole: Financial Oversight “Fatally Flawed”
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21st - Dole Statement on Economic Rescue Package
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18th - current Press Release
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15th - Dole Applauds FHFA Decision to Deny Golden Parachutes for Ousted Fannie, Freddie Execs
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11th - Dole, Bipartisan “Gang” of Senators to Deliver Comprehensive Energy Strategy
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11th - Dole Helps Introduce Legislation to Ban Fannie, Freddie Lobbying
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11th - Dole Supports Senate Action to Save Highway Trust Fund
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10th - Dole Helps Introduce Legislation to Deny Golden Parachutes for Fannie, Freddie Execs
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9th - Dole Announces More than $2 Million for Historically Black Universities in North Carolina
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9th - Dole Discusses Transportation Infrastructure, Energy Security
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8th - Dole Responds to Treasury Action on Fannie, Freddie
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4th - Dole Working to Ensure Effective Hurricane Response
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 : radio clip |  : television clip
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