This video comes from the Republican hit machine, but Maxine Waters can only blame herself for what she said. She also endorsed 100 percent loans.

Barney Frank looked no better.

Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_MGT_cSi7Rs

The problem with the Democrats was that they turned away from all the old "socialist" ideas. They turned against the idea of public housing, and even the idea of subsidized "affordable housing".

Look at the HOPE VI projects in LA. Less public housing, higher prices, private/public money, political support.

The way to stabilize the housing market is to increase the amount of real publicly owned housing, especially some kind of transitional housing to help the homeless get off the streets. But it can include larger ideas, like dispersed public housing tied together with educational communities, where residents and neighbors can learn about how to get an education, nutrition, finance, and other "middle class" things.

Public housing agencies can be used to take over and rehab blighted rental properties that are being neglected by landlords. (I said rental, not owner occupied.)

Having more public housing around calms the real estate market, preventing people from looking at housing as a "gold rush" of profits. They look at it as a place to live, and maybe look at landlording as a kind of lower-middle-class business. It's the kind of business that's good for someone like a construction worker to enter. (Think of Fred and Ethel Mertz from I Love Lucy.)

A lot of Democrats, especially in LA voted against the original law, believe it or not. It was split.

Schiff
Barb Lee
Filner
Sherman
Watson
Napolitano
Solis
Baca
Linda Sanchez
Loretta Sanchez
Roybal-Allard
Woolsey
Thompson
Stark
Becerra

Also, a lot of Republicans voted for the law.

McKeon
Lungren
Dreier
Gary Miller
Radanovich
Lewis
Campbell
Calvert
Bono
Herger