EDITOR'S NOTE: This is a sampling of political writer Josh Richman's blog, The Political Blotter. Read more and post comments at www.ibabuzz.com/politics.
Sept. 29
I've got an article up containing statements from Bay Area House members on why they voted for or against the $700 billion financial-market bailout bill today, but here's a fascinating factoid.
The data-digging geniuses at Berkeley-based MAPLight.org. — illuminating the connections between Money And Politics — found that over the past five years banks and securities firms gave an average of $231,877 in campaign contributions to each Representative voting in favor of the bailout today, compared with an average of $150,982 to each Representative voting against the bailout. That's 54 percent more money given to those who voted for this legislation.
MAPLight found the 140 House Democrats voting "yes" received an average of $212,700 each, about twice as much as the average $107,993 for the 95 House Democrats who voted "no." On the other side of the aisle, the 65 House Republicans voting "yes" received an average of $273,181 each, about 50 percent more than the average $181,688 for the 133 House Republicans voting "no."
"Profit-driven companies wouldn't be making campaign contributions if it didn't buy them influence or access," MAPLight Advertisementexecutive director Daniel Newman said in a news release. "Votes in Congress align with the river of money that flows through our political system."
UPDATE @ 6:06 P.M.: The Center for Responsive Politics has a similar analysis going back even further, to 1989.
Sept. 30
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has released a formula that determines funding levels for communities decimated by the foreclosure crisis, with an estimated $10.3 million directed to Alameda County and $8.2 million of that reserved for Oakland.
And Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, isn't happy.
"Though I am pleased we were able to secure this much needed funding for our communities being devastated by the foreclosure crisis, I remain concerned about the overall California allocation," she said in a release issued this afternoon. "Several of my colleagues and I have written a letter to HUD Secretary Steve Preston calling for a review of the formula and asking that it be adjusted to recognize the devastating impact of the foreclosure crisis in the state of California."
Under H.R. 3221, the Foreclosure Prevention Act signed into law July 30, HUD will disperse $3.92 billion in CDBG funding nationwide with $145 million in funding going to California; the money is to be used to buy and rehabilitate foreclosed properties that have been vacant for more than 90 days, as a means of restoring home values and reducing blight and crime in hard-hit neighborhoods.
Yet, Lee notes, California is slated to receive $12 million less of this CDBG funding than Florida.
Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums, Assembly member Sandr Swanson and Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson are on board with Lee's call for a re-examination of the funding formula. (It's not surprising to see all of them on the same page, as Lee, Swanson and Carson all worked for Dellums when he held the 9th Congressional District seat Lthat ee now occupies.)
"With regards to the issue of foreclosures, anyone familiar with this crisis knows that the city of Oakland and the county of Alameda have been hit extremely hard," Dellums said in Lee's release. "Many of Oakland's neighborhoods have been devastated by this crisis, and I join my colleagues in expressing our disappointment in what appears to be a fundamentally flawed and unfair formula."
Said Carson: "California has the second highest foreclosure rate in the country, second only to Nevada. The HUD allocation of $2 million does not adequately address the needs of working families in our communities who are struggling to hold onto their property."
And Swanson agreed time is of the essence "in dealing with long-vacant foreclosed properties. Increasing blight attracts crime, bringing down property values, and straining local police services that are often stretched too thin already. Given the incredibly high rate of foreclosures in the State, it is imperative that HUD re-examines its funding formula to ensure that California receives the funds it needs to properly address this crisis."
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