First were the Axis powers of World War II; then it was Korea; then Vietnam; then Russia; then China; then the Islamic fundamentalists who attacked our homeland and killed thousands; then Iraq, and finally Afghanistan. 

The end of the Cold War saw a change in Americans.  They had proven multiple times that America was the greatest power in the world, bound together against a common enemy, but they were beginning to tire of sending our soldiers across the world to defend other countries.  Their place in history was made. 

Americans who became adults after the Cold War ended focused on building a better life for their children, as the generations before them have.   They wanted a job they could keep for their career. 

As the economy prospered, credit became easier and easier along with the American dream of owning a home.  They found local bankers and real estate agents were approving them for mortgages at the upper edge of the buyers’ financial capacity, but all was fine because their futures were promising.  In no time, they would be able to refinance their terms to something more affordable. 

Americans believed their lives were guided by the invisible hand of the government, who would always watch out for them and provide an orderly and prosperous society. 

But they were not counting on unregulated business interests focused on greed, bundling good mortgages with bad to sell to investors, then repackaging to sell them again for higher profits. 

Then the sub-prime mortgage holders began to default on their mortgages, and as the wave increased, interest rates rose and refinancing became unavailable.  At the same time, the glut of new housing helped make all house values fall.  Americans now saw their dreams evaporate and they defaulted in droves. 

Many mortgage lenders did not have the financial cushion to absorb the loss of income and value from the deluge of defaults, and many stopped lending at all.  This impacted the many industries and businesses relying on revolving credit and slowed the economy to a standstill.  With business at a virtual standstill, employers went into survival mode and slashed their largest expense—employees.

It is no wonder Americans felt betrayed.  The government Americans had relied on did not realize the growing impact of hedge funds and investment banks as lenders that were not subject to the same regulations as banks.  Financial transactions became so complicated that almost no one understood the implications and risks of the transactions.  Even rating agencies had to rely on risk information given to them by the originators.  It was an unforgivable abandonment of responsibility. 

As the collapse intensified, the younger Americans became aware of the government that ran our country, and they did not like what they saw.  They had a different view of democracy; lawmakers and leaders should be competent, and actually do something for their pay and their votes. 

Instead they saw a gigantic bureaucracy that lives off the tax revenue, and provides little in return, except granting projects bartered for their individual states and districts hidden in bills with thousands of pages, passed by an elite, privileged member Congress. 

This anger ignited the passion of the multitude that swept Barack Obama into the presidency.  They voted for him based on one promise—he promised to change Washington and the way they do business.  He promised to end divisiveness between the parties and sign landmark legislation into law. 

And even though the new president immediately waded into the fray, promoting landmark legislation and inviting all sides to work together, he found the Republicans putting up a solid wall, publicly announcing their first priority was to destroy the president.  They would rather see the economy fail and take the American people down with them than contribute to a Democratic success.

Americans are angry that Barack Obama was elected president on his message of change, and although he waded into the problem with all his power and stopped America from its economic nosedive, the problem proved too big for him to accomplish on his promised schedule. 

They came to realize, in their new awareness of government that attack from common enemies can come from within their own borders, and betrayal from their own fellow Americans. 

They are angry that companies still export jobs and the government hasn’t done anything. 

They are angry that the promised changes haven’t come more quickly.  We have become a world of people expecting immediate gratification.  We are a people who still believe in working for a company until we retire, and feel betrayed that our employers don’t feel the same. 

Voters are also angry they don’t have more input into the legislative process.  They feel the promises made by politicians running for office can’t be kept. 

The voter of today is focused on the bottom line.  They want their Congressional “board of directors” and CEO to be competent.  They want “America, Inc.” to make good decisions that will advance the value of the citizen shareholders.  And they’re not getting their money’s worth. 

In 1994, Republicans swept into office promising fiscal reform and accountability.  By 2000, the 95 programs they had promised to cut, all remained and increased in total cost by 13%. 

In 2006, Democrats swept into office promising fiscal reform, accountability and an end to deficit spending; and most know where we are today on that issue.

The continual bickering and the slowness of steps taken to recovery are unacceptable.  Americans are angry with ALL politicians, spending billions on projects the people don’t completely understand, while the individual is trying to scrimp pennies. 

A recent poll showed that about half of all voters are angry about the federal government. 

And incumbents better watch out.  Voters can fire them.  The apparition of impending downfall has led 11 Democrats and 9 Republicans in the House and 5 Democrats and 5 Republicans in the Senate to announce their retirement.  Defeated in primaries were 2 Democrats and 2 Republicans in the House and 1 Democrat and 2 Republicans in the Senate.    

In national polls, one after another, Americans are expressing nearly equal levels of disgust for both parties in Congress.  The role of the independent is rising; to choose the best person for the job. 

Voter anger has all but killed the open town meeting with overheated emotions, confrontations and finger pointing from purposeful political disrupters that wind up on You Tube.  Politicians instead are holding invitation-only voter meetings, telephone town meetings, or touring workplaces in a controlled environment. 

Republicans are all in on voter anger. They have one and only one strategy for the 2010 election.  They are counting on the voters being so angry that they forget who made them angry in the first place.  Anger transforms feelings of powerlessness and creates an illusion of power and control.  Republicans want voters who are not interested in objective information, but only talk to reinforce what they believe.  And this is the year of the “mad as hell” voter.

It is most likely that the Democratic majority will diminish and both parties will have relatively equal forces.  Voters will send a message that both parties have failed.  That will give Republicans a negative mandate, rejecting the current state of affairs but not endorsing the Republican slate.  And the next two years will most likely be stalemated. 

Election Day is November 2.  Be a citizen.  Show up and vote.

A foreclosure sale is the result of a mortgage foreclosure.  When a homeowner cannot keep up with payments to the mortgage holder, the mortgage holder has the right to grab title to the property and protect their investment. 

Mortgage holders (mostly banks) are in the business of lending money.  They are not in favor of holding real estate.  Cash makes the bank’s bottom line; the value of assets like houses must be estimated and varies with market conditions.  Their one objective is to recover their investment. 

Their investment is the outstanding balance of the mortgage amount plus any profit they can recover.  However, with a foreclosure and an empty house, that investment grows every month the house is vacant, with taxes, insurance, maintenance and security expenses. 

Many angry homeowners, being evicted from their homes trash the house before leaving, and add to the bank’s expense. 

The current home mortgage crisis has hit banks like a growing tsunami since the start of the recession.  The loss of the homeowner’s employment, coupled with the plummet of the home’s value due to the glut of available homes was the reason many homeowners walked away from their mortgage.  This just added to the surplus of available homes, leaving the remainder of struggling homeowners holding on with only their pride. 

Bank foreclosure staffs were expected to handle any and all foreclosures coming to their notice, but as the tsunami grew in intensity, the process was bent on speed and quantity rather than fairness and quality. 

Republican President George W. Bush signed the TARP (Troubled Asset Relief Program) into law by on October 3, 2008.  The purpose of the bill was to buy assets and equity from private financial institutions to strengthen their positions, maintain American financial sector stability (avoid a financial meltdown crisis), and to offer five-year favorable loan modifications to homeowners whose loans were owned by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.   

The initial $350 billion was released immediately and the remaining $350 billion was released on January 15, 2009.  Although it was projected to cost $356 billion, it is estimated (October 2010) that it will cost only $30 billion (and may yet yield a profit) since almost most of the institutions that received funds have repaid or are repaying their obligations plus interest.  

The TARP program ended October 3, 2010 and all unspent and returned funds will go to reduce the federal deficit.  But the forclosure flood continues.  In 2009, 2.8 million homes were foreclosed, with 3 million expected in 2010.

The legal issues:

–Is the bank the current mortgage holder?  Banks often sell their mortgages to other institutions including Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae.  Do they actually own the mortgage they are foreclosing on?

–Did the foreclosing bank employees actually read and review the paperwork associated with the mortgage?   They are required to do it by law.  Were there errors or false data associated with the loan? 

–Was the loan simply “robo-signed” by bank employees interested in simply processing the record number of foreclosures and in the process violating the rights of the person holding the mortgage?  One Wells Fargo executive admitted signing as many as 150 foreclosure affidavits a day without checking any of the underlying facts.  How could they check the facts?  That volume in an 8-hour day means signing a document every 3 minutes.

Several large mortgage lenders have admitted that tens of thousands of legal affidavits were processed without reading or verifying the facts in the affidavits as required by law.  This lays a shadow of illegality on the process and opens the lenders to fraud and other broken laws; most banks stopped the foreclosure process in the 23 states that have a “judicial foreclosure” process that can be prosecuted by the courts. 

Bank of America, followed by several larger banks have stopped their foreclosure process in all 50 states, although the remaining 27 states have a non-judicial foreclosure process between borrowers and lenders.  

President Barack Obama vetoed a bill last week that would have made it easier for banks to approve foreclosure documents, that the White House said could hurt consumers. 

Banks might save money and recover some money but turning owners into renters until the house is sold.  Collect a large deposit from the former homeowner and offer occupancy for rent and maintenance like an apartment rather than leave the house empty.  The large deposit is insurance that the former owner will take care of the house for the bank.  The displaced family will no doubt go to a rental.  Why not make the rental good for both parties?