Smoking Gun: Document Found That Touched Off the Mortgage Meltdown

◼ [In 1994] the federal government declared war on an enemy — the racist lender — who officials claimed was to blame for differences in homeownership rate, and launched what would prove the costliest social crusade in U.S. history. - Doug Ross

At President Clinton's direction, no fewer than 10 federal agencies issued a chilling ultimatum to banks and mortgage lenders to ease credit for lower-income minorities or face investigations for lending discrimination and suffer the related adverse publicity. They also were threatened with denial of access to the all-important secondary mortgage market and stiff fines, along with other penalties.

The threat was codified in a 20-page "Policy Statement on Discrimination in Lending" and entered into the Federal Register on April 15, 1994, by the Interagency Task Force on Fair Lending. Clinton set up the little-known body to coordinate an unprecedented crackdown on alleged bank redlining. Read the rest.

White House: No legalized pot, people, sorry

◼ All those kids who once upon a time chanted “Yes, we cannabis!” must be sorely disappointed. - Tina Korbe/HotAir

Is increase in government power necessary to achieve “equality”?

◼ Not only do we have a gay movement focused on attaining this elusive and ambiguous abstaction, but with the rise of the #Occupy Wall Street movement, “income inequality” has also come to the fore, as Jazz Shaw reports, one “of the hot terms occupying the center ring of the political circus these days“. - Gay Patriot

It seems that in both cases, the various political movements are demanding increased government regulation of and control over private enterprise in order to achieve their desired equal result.

Recently, I listened to a representative of “Equality California” detailing all the legislation his outfit advocated, asking his interlocutor to eheck the web-site to see the full list of laws they wanted to see enacted. Driving away, I recalled the first five words of the Bill of Rights, “Congress shall make no law . . .” (Emphasis added.)... Read the rest.

Happy Halloween!

'TOTALLY BASELESS, TOTALLY FALSE'

◼ Cain On Sexual Harassment Charge: "Totally Baseless And Totally False" - Real Clear Politics
◼ POLITICO: Two Women Accused Cain of Inappropriate Behavior...
◼ Politico's Reporter: 'We're Not Going To Get Into Details Of Exactly What Happened'... - Real Clear Politics
◼ Cain's Former Secretary: This Is Not the Herman Cain I Know - Weekly Standard
◼ CAIN FLASHBACK: 'I'M READY FOR HIGH-TECH LYNCHING'... - Byron York/Washington Examiner
◼ Cain responds to sex harassment allegation - Byron York/Washington Examiner
◼ Blaming "establishment" won't save Cain - Philip Klein/Washington Examiner

If the allegations are indeed false, then the Cain campaign better be able to elaborate about what was specifically false in the story. Simply blaming the "establishment" for trying to take him down, won't cut it outside of his die hard fan base.

◼ Coulter: Politico's Smear Of Cain Shows Liberal Media "Terrified Of Strong, Conservative, Black Men" - Real Clear Politics

Ann Coulter responds to a report from the "liberal publication" Politico that Herman Cain sexually harassed two women while he was the president of the National Restaurant Association.
"Liberals are terrified of Herman Cain. He is a strong conservative black man. Look at the way they go after Allen West and Michael Steele and they aren't even running against Obama. They are terrified of strong, conservative, black men," Coulter said.

◼ RUSH: 'Unconscionable Racially Charged Attack'... - Real Clear Politics
◼ Karl Rove: Allegations Against Cain Have Been Out There For At Least 10 Days (Video) = Gateway Pundit
◼ Cain explains in interviews with Judy Woodruff, Greta Van Susteren... - Mediabistro
◼ RECALLS GESTURE: 'You are the height of my wife'... - Byron York/Washington Examiner

The interview with Fox, scheduled to air on van Susteren's program at 10 p.m. Eastern time, is part of a series of interviews Cain is making this week. (Note: I am a Fox News contributor.) The press offensive was originally planned to discuss Cain's economic plans, but has turned into a series of questions about the sexual harassment allegations from the 1990s.

◼ Politico won’t say if rival campaign fed them Cain story - Alex Pappas/Daily Caller
◼ The despicable data dump - Rick Manning/The Hill

The reprehensible act of fabricating a sexual-discrimination charge to generate headlines that play on presumed deeply held racial fears is the ultimate act of desperation, and whoever is responsible for the leak should be drummed out of politics forever.

◼ Hermanator — at the eye of the storm - Justin Sink/The Hill
◼ Unsettling - Mark Steyn
What ought to make America “uncomfortable” is that it’s broke and it’s heading for collapse.

Fast and Furious: 17 Members of Congress Now Calling For Holder to Resign

◼ [N]ine more members of Congress have called upon Holder to resign over his role in the Fast and Furious gun-walking scandal, and the gigantic cover-up that major media sources other than CBS News have barely noticed - John Hayward/Human Events

CBS News reports Holder will appear before the House Judiciary Committee to answer further questions about his role in Operation Fast and Furious on December 8. Perhaps we’ll hear more about all the reports he doesn’t read, and operations he doesn’t monitor.

Meanwhile, Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland, the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight committee, wants to hear more from former Acting ATF Director Ken Melson… in order to shore up the firewall of deniability around Eric Holder, as he obliquely explained in a letter to Oversight chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA)...

So Cummings wants to give Ken Melson one more chance to serve as the Fast and Furious fall guy, a role he proved surprisingly unwilling to fill.

Melson has reportedly agreed to testify before the Judiciary Committee, where he’ll have an opportunity to bolster Eric Holder’s strange “incompetence” defense against perjury charges, by testifying the Attorney General was serenely unaware of a massive, supposedly “botched” operation that killed both Mexican and American citizens. It looks like Cummings doesn’t think the Fast and Furious expedition is a “political stunt” and a “deep-sea fishing expedition” any more.

Update: late-breaking reports say Holder will appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee on November 8, while House Judiciary gets him on December 8.

◼ Secretary Clinton Claims “Fast and Furious” Was News To Her, And Voices Grow Against Holder - NoQuarter

◼ UPDATE: 28 GOP Reps Join Call for Holder's Resignation - Newsmax