Newsletter Archives

Friday, October 8, 2010

North Star Newsletter | October, 2010

Rebuilding After the Flood

Recently, I have been visiting flood-affected communities in Western and Southern Minnesota. During my visits I was inspired by the outpouring of local support and the quick action taken by community leaders and the hundreds of volunteers who came together to respond to the flooding. I have been in touch with state and local officials, and I’m working to make sure that these communities have all the resources they need to aid their recovery efforts. I urged President Obama to issue a disaster declaration, which would help bring federal assistance to the affected communities. And I will continue to work with communities to provide resources and information.

Stopping Abusive Debt Collectors

Last week, I introduced the bipartisan End Debt Collector Abuse Act with Sen. George LeMieux from Florida. Recent news and reports have detailed the abusive practices used by many debt collectors—practices such as making nasty and harassing calls, seeking arrest warrants against debtors, and going after innocent people for debts that they don't owe. Minnesota families have enough to deal with right now without debt collection firms gaming the system to take advantage of them, and that’s why I introduced this bill to increase consumer protections and keep debt collectors honest.

Holding Mortgage Companies Responsible

Last week, I called for an investigation into Ally Financial, one of the largest mortgage holders in America, because of alleged misconduct that may have resulted in homes being wrongly foreclosed. I asked six federal agencies to coordinate their investigations to see if any laws were broken, and to make sure that people who were illegitimately foreclosed upon receive compensation. We have to make sure this problem is fixed and that it doesn’t happen again. That’s why I’ve been fighting to create an Office of the Homeowner Advocate for the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP), which would focus on assisting homeowners who believe their mortgage servicer is breaking the rules.

Recognizing Our Men and Women in Uniform

On Saturday, I was proud to attend the welcome home ceremony of the 204th Area Support Medical Company (ASMC) of the Minnesota Army National Guard from Operation Iraqi Freedom. The soldiers received Freedom Salute Awards in recognition of their service and sacrifice. The 204th ASMC returned from a yearlong deployment in Iraq where they provided health care services to U.S. and Coalition forces. I can’t thank them enough for their service, or overstate the importance of their mission. So again, thank you. The Minnesota National Guard is second to none and you make our state proud. Pictures of the event are up on my Flickr page.

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