Down payments in these states may be larger than TN. What is really in play is a bailout for those who may have had a large downpayment, but are now not paying the mortgage.

Take a look at the default rates. Here

(link...)

You will note that California (more than NY) has a huge problem with default. Downpayment does not indicate a basis that the loan will be paid back. Why should any taxpayer anywhere, have to pay to reduce the principle on those who can not pay?

TN may have a lower downpayments, but they also pay their mortgages.

Playing states against each other like this is crass and disgraceful. Rebutting Corker's assertions gives them more credit than they deserve. The whole notion that "irresponsible borrowing" is at the root of the financial crisis is propaganda that should be nipped in the bud.

At best, this is a crisis of irresponsible lending, and really it is more a crisis of irresponsible bundling and collateralization built atop the lending market. The only people being bailed out in all of this are bankers. Everyone else is a victim.

Corker is engaging in serious and reprehensible class warfare. He ought to crawl out of the board room, get off his knees and apologize to his constituents.

Write-downs on mortgage principals don't impose any real costs on taxpayers

Since we taxpayers "own" Fannie and Freddie now these are OUR costs and not just the costs of bank shareholders. However in most cases it will be cost effective to write down the value of the loan and keep the homeowner in place rather than leave the home open to vandals and thieves.

Corker is such a creepy little pigmy. A friend of mine whose wife is very close friends with Corker's wife lost his toddler son in a tragic and highly publicized accident back in the 90s. A few years later when Corker ran for Senate, my friend gave him a substantial contribution. Corker thanked him for the gift, then said "How's the boy?"

I know some self-absorbed people, but Corker takes the cake.

Bailed out the banks and we should not bail out underwater or delinquent mortgage holders! The sooner all this is washed out of the system, the better it will be for everyone.

Mr. Creek is right. We "own" fanny and feddie and the taxpayers will eat this at some point. If, as Mr. Creek suggests, that we take a write down to sell the properties and get them off the books, then maybe that is what we should do.

My problem is that just b/c someone can't make a payment on a loan they signed on, why should they get a break? I would love to have a portion of my mortgage forgiven, but I am current. Do I have to stop paying in order to get some of that?

...do something to help people stay in their homes. Being a finger-wagging, self-righteous scold may appeal to your sense of rich man superiority, but your position would lead to more people walking away from mortgages they can no longer afford and leaving empty houses that become a neighborhood blight.

This is exactly what has happened in my own neighborhood.

Leaveme, look at it this way - people in the bubble areas payed waaay too much for their houses because that was their only choice. Rather than be bitter, perhaps be grateful you live in an area where you could buy a house you can afford.

So what do you propose - we sell the houses wholesale to well connected insiders? We (the taxpayers) would lose more money that way.

Does anyone know whether Corker voted for the public takeover of F&F?

Just when we thought we couldn't get a dumber TN representative ...

Hey, maybe Politifact will call him out on his lies! /snark