Stacy Kaper

Stacy Kaper

Staff Writer, Economics

Stacy Kaper is the economics staff writer for National Journal covering financial regulation and housing reform. Previously, Kaper spent five years as the Capitol Hill reporter for American Banker newspaper where she covered the foreclosure and financial crisis including the debate and implementation of the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Kaper also covered the financial services implications at the 2008 Democratic and Republican National Conventions where she interviewed economic advisors to Obama and McCain. Previously Kaper was a freelancer covering agriculture for The (Baltimore) Sun. Prior to that she was a reporter for a chain of five weekly papers in Los Angeles, where she covered local government and California’s energy crunch. She studied international relations and journalism at Syracuse University and has a Master of Journalism from the University of Maryland.  

Stacy Kaper's Latest Posts

S&P Warns Congress of Risks of Political Brinkmanship on Debt

The group's top analyst for the U.S. government's credit rating says making big fiscal decisions in a crisis setting raises chances of another downgrade. Read More »
Q&A

The U.S. Is Not ‘Credit-Positive’

If the debt-ceiling debate doesn’t bring real reform, says the S&P analyst in charge of grading government creditworthiness, get ready for another downgrade.  Read More »

Feinstein: Rogers a 'Respected' Contender for FBI

The Obama administration is considering House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Rogers, R-Mich., for the top job at the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Read More »

IRS Scandal Throws Max Baucus New Challenges on Tax Reform

The unfolding Internal Revenue Service scandal could complicate Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus’s No. 1 goal of enacting comprehensive tax reform before he retires at the end of this Congress. Read More »

GOP Leans on Lieberman in Boston Probe

Putting the former independent senator in an attack-dog role gives Republicans political cover to keep pressing for answers on intelligence and law enforcement failures ahead of the Boston bombings.   Read More »

Lieberman Backs GOP Line on Security Failures in Boston Marathon Attack

Joe Lieberman gave a boost to a Republican line of attack against the Obama administration for failing to fully investigate and share information that might have prevented the Boston bombings. Read More »

Why Lindsey Graham Isn’t Afraid of a Conservative Challenger

Two-term Sen. Lindsey Graham expects a primary challenge from the right, making his starring role in immigration reform a confounding political vulnerability for the South Carolina Republican. Read More »

House Homeland Security Committee Plans Hearing on Boston Attack for Next Week

The House Homeland Security Committee plans to hold the first congressional hearing next week examining the Boston Marathon terrorist attack and what it says about the state of the nation’s post-Sept. 11 security infrastructure. Read More »

Senators Say Chemical Weapons in Syria Cross Obama's 'Red Line'

Senior senators -- now including Senate Intelligence Chairman Dianne Feinstein -- say Syria has used chemical weapons on its citizens, crossing the 'red line' President Obama put down as trigger for U.S. intervention.   Read More »

What Congress Learned Thursday About the Accused Boston Bombers

The FBI was not just concerned with Tamerlan Tsarnaev in 2011 but other family members too, according to information that U.S. security officials gave some senators during a closed-door briefing on Thursday. Here is what the senator...

Read More »

Senators Focus on Information Breakdown in Boston Attack

In the wake of the Boston Marathon attack, lawmakers are focusing on whether federal law enforcement botched information it had about the deceased suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev in 2011 and whether post-Sept. 11 information-sharing secur...

Read More »

What Will Max Baucus Do With His New Political Freedom?

The Montana senator's retirement could affect legislation on guns, taxes, immigration, and the debt ceiling. If only he'll agree with his fellow Democrats. Read More »

Reid Set to Push for Conference on Budget

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, is expected to ask the Senate for consent to move to a conference on the budget, according to a Democratic aide.  Read More »

Bob Corker Charts Leadership Course

Sen. Bob Corker's independent voice on high-profile issues and scholarly devotion to studying policies he is interested in have made GOP leaders take notice of him and want to keep the Tennessee Republican close at hand — both to ...

Read More »

Ricin Letter Adds To Anxiety on the Hill

Amid an already edgy state of alert in Washington following Monday’s bombings at the Boston Marathon, law enforcement officials confirmed on Tuesday that they were also investigating whether an envelope containing the poison ricin...

Read More »

Lawmakers Seek Answers on Boston Attacks

Congress is asking lots of questions and getting few answers so far about the Boston attack.   Read More »

Is Obama’s Budget Gamble Thawing the GOP?

President Obama’s decision to include in his budget proposal cuts to Social Security and Medicare—two entitlement programs central to the Democratic base—has set off a fierce debate in Washington about whether the White House ...

Read More »

Could Chuck Schumer Be Well-Set to Chair Senate Banking Committee?

The departure of Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Johnson after 2014 could set off a future chain of musical chairmanships. One of the leading contenders for the influential post is the chamber’s No. 3-ranking Democrat, &n...

Read More »

Armed With Excuses, Lawmakers Head Home to Sequester Complaints

As lawmakers were preparing to go back home to their districts for a two-week recess, many were already getting an earful of grievances from constituents about the sequester’s impact and were bracing to hear far more in meetings a...

Read More »
PEOPLE

Five Small Business Committee Staffers to Know

Here are the people you need to know on the Small Business Committee staffs on both sides of the Capitol. Read More »

5 Staffers to Watch on the House and Senate Budget Committees

The House and Senate will be wrangling with their respective budgets this week. There’s little expectation that the two chambers’ products will be combined into a joint budget resolution, but they serve as the starting points fo...

Read More »

Patty Murray’s Stature Is Tied to Her Budget’s Fate

Succeeding in what Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., dubbed “mission impossible” could elevate Murray's status as a rising star in Democratic ranks. Read More »

Deal in Sight to Keep the Government Open

The House appears willing to accept the Senate's proposal to keep the government funded for the rest of the fiscal year, avoiding a protracted fight that could lead to a government shutdown by the end of the month. Read More »

Budget Cuts Keep Freshman Senators in the 'Swing Suites'

The across-the-board cuts to the federal government’s budget are exacerbating an already convoluted process for new senators moving from cramped temporary digs to their permanent offices.  Read More »
HOUSE

The Real Budget Battle

In Washington, all financial skirmishes lead to the same place. Read More »

Paul's Filibuster Draws Divisions Within GOP

It might not be a sign of an overnight upheaval in the leadership of Republican defense orthodoxy, but Sen. Rand Paul’s long filibuster questioning drone use in the U.S. struck a civil libertarian nerve that is illuminating divisi...

Read More »

Inside the Rand Paul Filibuster

For a politician who earned his stripes as a political outsider, Sen. Rand Paul’s filibuster performance and planning demonstrated his aptitude at the inside D.C. game. Read More »
PEOPLE

Five Staff Positions to Watch: Chiefs of Staff for Freshman Senators

Meet the chiefs of staff for five of the Senate's newest members. Read More »

How the Sequester Could Play Out

With sequestration all but certain to kick in Friday, there are several scenarios that may unfold. Here are some possibilities for the ensuing policy and politics. Read More »

Fearing Blame Will Shift to Obama, Democrats Oppose Flexibility in Sequester Cuts

Top lawmakers spent Tuesday searching for leverage points in the coming public-relations war over the automatic spending cuts that almost everyone agrees will now occur even though they were never designed to go into effect. Read More »

After the Sequester, Government Shutdown Looms

Congressional leaders are already shifting their focus to the next spending battle after the automatic budget sequester takes effect on Friday—how to keep the government running—but the Democratic strategy on this fight is far f...

Read More »
PEOPLE

Who To Watch on Capitol Hill During the Sequestration Fight

Here are 5 leadership staffers critical to developing the policy proposals and political strategy of the sequestration battle. Read More »

How the Continuing Resolution Got Pegged to March 4

The House will not take up a continuing resolution to keep the government funded before the week of March 4, but how it came to that starting date is the subject of some debate. Read More »

GOP Wants More Time, Not More Information, Before Chuck Hagel Vote

Republicans defeat effort to end debate on Chuck Hagel's nomination as defense secretary. Democrats call it a filibuster, but the GOP insists it just needs more time to think it through.   Read More »

Chuck Hagel's Confirmation as Pentagon Chief Could Be in Doubt

Growing unease about Chuck Hagel as Pentagon chief could lead Republicans to force the nomination to clear a 60-vote threshold on the Senate floor, lawmakers said Tuesday.   Read More »

Does Chuck Hagel Have Enough Support to Clear the Senate? The White House Thinks So

The White House still thinks it has the Senate votes to put Chuck Hagel in the top job at the Pentagon, but concedes it would be a narrowly won victory. Read More »

Once Unthinkable, Severe Spending Cuts Now Seem Plausible

Senators increasingly see the sequester as the best deal either side can get. Read More »

Conservative Republicans Losing Steam on Default Dare

House Republican leadership appears to have quieted naysayers on their right who recently seemed hungry to threaten default and defy conventional arguments that such a hardline stance would trigger crisis. Read More »

What Obama Wants and What Congress Will Give Him

How the president's vision fits with what Congress is likely to do. Read More »
TAXES

Levin Indicates 2013 Tax Reform Not Likely

Tax reform is not dead, but it certainly sounds postponed.   Read More »
INFLUENCE

Citi Hires Tax Lobbyist

Bill Rys has joined Citi's lobbying shop to help build Citi’s tax and revenue advocacy in Washington. Read More »
POWER

Blocking Lew Gets the GOP Nowhere in Debt Ceiling Fight

Republicans have made it clear. They are looking for a pound of flesh in the form of spending cuts in exchange for solving the next fiscal-crisis-in-waiting -- the debt ceiling. And while some aides might whisper about blocking a Tr...

Read More »
POWER

Moody’s to Congress: Further Fiscal Steps Needed

Moody’s Investor Service warned Washington Wednesday not to rest on its haunches after its New Year’s Day passage of legislation to avert the fiscal cliff, arguing more work must be done to meaningfully lower the U.S. debt traje...

Read More »
BUDGET

Fiscal Cliff Won't Be the Last You Hear From Simpson and Bowles

As the fiscal-cliff saga has played out, Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson have been on a roadshow aimed at building a groundswell of support for broad deficit reduction. Read More »

Five Sleeper Issues Washington Could Face in 2013

The incoming Congress has big challenges ahead. But don’t be distracted by the bright shiny objects that are tax reform, entitlement reform, and maybe even gun control. There are some important issues for the U.S. economy and U.S....

Read More »

Republicans Aim To Slash Dodd-Frank Reforms in 'Plan B'

Beneath the fracas on the fiscal cliff fight, the Republicans' Plan B proposal would check off many items on the GOP’s financial services wish-list, gutting core pieces at the heart of the Dodd-Frank 2010 reform law and terminatin...

Read More »
WHITE HOUSE

Obama Treasury Secretary Pick To Await Fiscal Cliff Resolution

As the countdown to the fiscal cliff at the end of the year dominates the attention of the White House and lawmakers, President Obama is unlikely to make any announcement about his choice to replace departing Treasury Secretary Timo...

Read More »

Boehner's Plan B Is a Message to Both Obama and the GOP

A "Plan B" offered by Speaker John Boehner that would avert year-end tax hikes for all Americans who make less than $1 million was on one level a warning to the White House to bend more in the fiscal-cliff negotiations. But it was a...

Read More »
PEOPLE

Banking Committee Staff Director Heads Back to K Street

Dwight Fettig , the staff director for the Senate Banking Committee under Chairman Tim Johnson , D-S.D., is leaving Capitol Hill at the end of the year to return to the boutique financial services firm Porterfield & Lowenthal . Read More »

Capito Optimistic on Fiscal-Cliff Deal

Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., said on Tuesday that she believes the House will ultimately reach a deal with the administration  to address the fiscal cliff before the end of the year, signaling that Republicans could be p...

Read More »
CONGRESS

Gang Ready to Jump Into Action if Obama-Boehner Talks Fail

After two years of near-weekly meetings, countless conference calls, breakfasts, and dinners spent batting back and forth deficit-reduction ideas, the bipartisan “Gang of Eight” senators is shifting its focus, now that the de...

Read More »
SPECIAL REPORT: 2013 OUTLOOK

The People, Not Washington, Will Solve America's Everyday Problems

Beyond the fiscal cliff, entitlement reform, and a tax overhaul, a host of other issues continue to vex Americans. They include burgeoning traffic, the shrinking pool of affordable housing, escalating gun violence, and the rising in...

Read More »

Liberal Think Tank: Debt Ceiling Is Biggest Threat

The potential for brinkmanship in Congress over raising the debt ceiling is the most perilous immediate threat to the economy, eclipsing the short-term risks of going over the fiscal cliff, and should be addressed pronto, argued ...

Read More »
CONGRESS

Warren Expected to Win Seat on Senate Banking Committee

For weeks, Democratic aides and banking lobbyists have denied claims that the financial industry was working to block Sen.-elect Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., from winning a seat on the Senate Banking Committee. Read More »

California, 52nd House District

A redrawn congressional district made more Democratic by the removal of heavily Republican areas in San Diego gave Scott Peters an opening to oust three-term GOP incumbent Brian Bilbray. Peters self-financed his campaign with more t...

Read More »
POWER

A New Gang of Eight Drinking Game on the Fiscal Cliff

Here’s the recipe for a new fiscal cliff drinking game in Washington. Ask a member of the Gang of Eight bipartisan senators trying to work on a resolution to head off the fiscal cliff and then drink every time they mention the “...

Read More »
SENATE

Elizabeth Warren Faces Balancing Act

Elizabeth Warren, the Senate’s newest star, arrived at the Capitol on Wednesday for new-member orientation with a reputation as a champion for consumers and the strong backing of liberal Democrats. She is sure to be a thorn in Wal...

Read More »
CONGRESS

Taxes a Hot Topic as Gang of Eight Reunites

The Gang of Eight bipartisan senators trying to help avert the fiscal cliff reunited for the first time since the elections for a series of back-to-back get-togethers this week, but progress remains elusive. Read More »
BUDGET

Outgoing Treasury Secretary Geithner Still Immersed in Fiscal-Cliff Negotiations

In the postelection showdown over expiring tax cuts and automatic spending reductions, seasoned crisis fighter Timothy Geithner will play a crucial role as the administration’s top economic official and a liaison to both Capito...

Read More »
INFLUENCE

'Fix the Debt' Launches Ad Blitz on Fiscal Cliff

The 'Fix the Debt' campaign led by Maya MacGuineas , the president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget , is seizing on the post-election political moment to kick off an advertising campaign designed to bring national...

Read More »
POWER

Gang of Eight Regroups Post-Election

The notorious Gang of Eight decided to waste no time after the elections. Read More »
CONGRESS

Warren Open to Compromise on Deficit

Just one day after ousting Massachusetts Republican Sen. Scott Brown, Democratic Senator-elect Elizabeth Warren said she would look for ways to compromise with Republicans to find solutions to the deficit crisis. Read More »
CONGRESS

Kaine Targets Outside Group Spending After Win

Senator-elect Tim Kaine, D-Va., complained about spending from outside group following his victory on Wednesday, calling for the Senate to address outside spending and transparency. Read More »
CAMPAIGN 2012

Partisans Argue Over the 'Mandate' Question

Partisans and pundits parsing the election seem to agree that the signal from voters is that the political parties need to work together, though the question of whether voters sent a “mandate” to Washington remains a sore sub...

Read More »
INFLUENCE

Administration Official Dances Around Payroll Tax Cut Issue

Jan Eberly , the Treasury Department's assistant secretary for economic policy, ducked an opportunity to press for an extension of the payroll tax holiday Friday, in a move that seemed to signal the administration's lack of desire...

Read More »
SUNDAY SHOWS

McCain Calls Libya 'Worst Cover Up or Incompetence I Have Ever Observed'

Sen. John McCain offered one of the harshest critiques yet of the Obama administration’s handling of the terrorist attack in Libya that killed four Americans, calling it either “a cover up” or “the worst kind of incompete...

Read More »
SUNDAY SHOWS

Republicans Attack Obama on Libya

Republicans argued on Sunday that the administration’s handling of the terrorist attack in Libya that killed four Americans raises questions about President Obama’s leadership and is an increasingly important campaign issue. Read More »
SUNDAY SHOWS

Campaigns Duel Over Register Endorsement

When The Des Moines Register endorsed Mitt Romney this weekend—the first time in 40 years that it backed a Republican—it got both campaigns talking. Read More »
SUNDAY SHOWS

Both Campaigns Bullish on Ohio

Officials at both presidential campaigns say they are bullish on the critical swing state of Ohio, despite recent polls that show President Obama maintains a slight edge. Read More »
SUNDAY SHOWS

Republicans Downplay Mourdock's Comments on Rape and Pregnancy

Republicans downplayed the significance of Indiana Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock’s controversial comments on rape and pregnancy, attempting on Sunday to draw attention to other issues. Read More »
SUNDAY SHOWS

Campaigns Brace for Hurricane Sandy

Both President Obama and Mitt Romney have had to sideline campaigning in the critical swing state of Virginia due to major storms, including Hurricane Sandy. Read More »
POWER

Warner 'All In' on Trying to Solve Fiscal Cliff

It's no secret how badly Sen. Mark Warner , D-Va. -- the unofficial ringleader of the Gang of Eight -- wants Congress to prevent the economy from falling off the fiscal cliff at the end of the year. Read More »
POLITICS

Debate Fact-Check: The Second Presidential Debate Between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney

President Obama and Mitt Romney covered a wide range of topics in the second of their three presidential debates, this one held on Tuesday night at Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y. Here is a look at some of their statements and...

Read More »

Obama Administration Delays China Currency Report

Taking cover on a diplomatically sensitive issue that has become political fodder on the campaign trail, the Obama administration said on Friday it was delaying until after the Nov. 6 election a decision on whether China should be l...

Read More »
EDUCATION

The Trouble With Big Name, Big Priced Colleges: They're Not Worth It

Vanessa Bertrand always intended to go to a big-name, out-of-state school. She made the decision as a little girl, watching Cliff Huxtable on a rerun of The Cosby Show argue the merits of Princeton, Yale, Howard, and his father’s ...

Read More »
CONGRESS

No Lobbying, But Plenty of Politics and Policy Ahead for Retiring Rep. Barney Frank

Rep. Barney Frank , D-Mass., says he will remain involved in public policy and politics after his retirement in January, but he will not become a lobbyist. Read More »
ECONOMY

Credit Help Promised for At-Home Spouses

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray promised lawmakers on Thursday that the agency would take action on a credit-access issue that both Republicans and Democrats are in rare agreement on needs to be address...

Read More »
CAMPAIGN 2012

Romney: Jobs Report a 'Hangover'

Mitt Romney threw cold water on President Obama’s promise for improving the country’s future, calling Friday’s jobs report “the hangover” from the previous night's Democratic National Convention. Read More »
CONVENTIONS 2012

Senior Democrats Spar Over Maximizing Fiscal-Cliff Leverage

Current and former Obama and Clinton administration advisers and Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill., squared off on Thursday over how to work with Republicans to forestall a looming fiscal crisis. Read More »
CONVENTIONS 2012

President’s Speech Will Tackle Entitlement Reform, Aides Say

A campaign aide to President Obama said that in his speech tonight, the president will discuss deficit reduction and entitlement reform. Read More »
POLITICS

Castro: Both Parties Must Do More Hispanic Outreach

San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro, fresh from his keynote speech at the Democratic National Convention, said on Wednesday that Democrats as well as Republicans need to do a better job of reaching out to Hispanics. Read More »
CONVENTIONS 2012

Castro: Both Parties Must Do More Hispanic Outreach

San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro said on Wednesday that both parties need to do a better job of reaching out to Hispanics. Read More »
CAMPAIGN 2012

Crossroads Ad Hits Obama: Backward, not Forward

The independent Republican group American Crossroads has a new ad out alleging that President Obama is taking America backward, not forward. Read More »
CONVENTIONS 2012

Pollsters Cite Obama Demographic Weaknesses

White seniors, young people, white non-college educated women, and diminished enthusiasm are among President Obama’s biggest election vulnerabilities, Democratic pollsters said on Tuesday. “The president lost white seniors...

Read More »
CONVENTIONS 2012

Report: Rove Presses Billionaires to Bankroll Defeating Obama

Political strategist Karl Rove convened an exclusive breakfast fundraising mission on the GOP convention's final day, imploring well-heeled donors to pour millions of dollars into his super PAC to unseat President Obama and other ...

Read More »
CONVENTIONS 2012

Advice for Romney Tonight

Mitt Romney needs to say something new, paint a compelling vision for the future and use his story to make a bigger point, GOP strategists said on Thursday at a National Journal/The Atlantic /CBS News event at the Republican Natio...

Read More »
CONVENTIONS 2012

GOP Sees House Gain of Up to 7 Seats

Rep. Pete Sessions , R-Texas, chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, said he expects Republicans will pick up a net of five to seven House seats in November. Read More »
CONVENTIONS 2012

GOP Pollsters Downplay Romney's Likability Factor

Mitt Romney’s likability might not be as much of a vulnerability in the presidential election as the conventional wisdom implies, senior GOP pollsters said on Tuesday at a National Journal / The Atlantic /CBS News event at the Re...

Read More »
CONVENTIONS 2012

Christie Beats Back Digs About His Weight

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, keynote speaker at the Republican National Convention, said on Tuesday that the New York Post’s recent “Fat Chance” headline referring to his weight doesn’t bother him. Read More »
CONVENTIONS 2012

Craig Romney Cuts Spanish-Language Ad

In an attempt to appeal to Latino voters, Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney’s youngest son, Craig, has rolled out a Spanish-language radio ad , boasting of his father’s family values and the fact that his grandfather ...

Read More »
CONVENTIONS 2012

Report: Crist To Speak at Democratic Convention

Former Florida Republican Gov. Charlie Crist will speak at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., next week, ABC News reports. Read More »
BANKING AND FINANCE

Consumer Watchdog Sets New Rules for Mortgages

The government watchdog agency for consumer financial protection rolled out new rules on Friday aimed at giving homeowners more information about their mortgage loans, including warnings about future interest-rate increases and grea...

Read More »
HOUSING

Housing Regulator Deals Setback to Obama, Democrats

The decision on Tuesday by a top housing regulator to shut the door on principal forgiveness for underwater mortgages dealt a major setback to an initiative sought by President Obama and congressional Democrats. Read More »

Geithner: We Did 'Fully Appropriate Thing' on Libor

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner defended his stewardship of the financial sector on Wednesday at a Capitol Hill hearing, where he faced aggressive questioning about his role in the Libor scandal. Read More »
POWER

Look for Geithner to 'Take a Beating' on the Hill

It is shaping up to be a dramatic week for Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner , who will face a grilling on the Libor scandal in two days of hearings on Capitol Hill. Read More »
BANKING AND FINANCE

U.S. Banks Ignored in Congressional Libor-Rigging Probe

None of the three U.S. banks—Bank of America, Citigroup, or JPMorgan Chase—involved in establishing the London interbank offered rate, which remains under investigation for alleged rigging, have been asked by Congress to answer ...

Read More »
BANKING AND FINANCE

Awkward Timing for Dodd-Frank Critics

Just days after the Libor-rigging scandal came front and center at a hearing with Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Capitol Hill, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is out with a new report arguing that one of Dodd-Frank’s corner...

Read More »
POWER

Bank Rate Scandal Dominates Closed-Door Fed Briefing

In a sign of Capitol Hill's growing concern over alleged interest rate-rigging by banks, a closed-door briefing on Friday that had been planned as a discussion on the economy and job growth ended up being dominated by the Libor sca...

Read More »
TAXES

Congressional Dems Get on Board With Obama's Tax Message

Congressional Democrats have rallied behind President Obama’s call for extending reduced tax rates for people who earn less than $250,000 a year, as members, at least for the moment, shake off internal disagreements for the sake o...

Read More »
POWER

House, Senate Reach Deal on Flood-Insurance Measure

House and Senate negotiators have reached a tentative agreement on compromise legislation to reform the National Flood Insurance Program and reauthorize it for five years--a deal that has broad support from financial services, taxp...

Read More »
LEADERSHIP

Pryor Drops Opposition to Debate on Flood Bill

Sen. Mark Pryor , D-Ark., on Tuesday said he was no longer opposing Senate debate on legislation to reform the National Flood Insurance Program and was instead focused on trying to get his amendment adopted on the floor. Read More »
LEADERSHIP

Flood Bill in Danger of Washing Out

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid 's plan to take up flood insurance reform is in danger of a wash out thanks to uncertainty over whether one of his Democrats plans to derail the bill. Democratic Sen. Mark Pryor , who vote...

Read More »
Q&A

Eric Schneiderman, Street Cop

New York's attorney general discusses a Justice Department task force investigating mortgage fraud on Wall Street.  Read More »

House Approves Flood Insurance Extension, Bill Moves to President

The House approved a short-term, 60-day extension of the National Flood Insurance Program on Wednesday, keeping the program alive and setting the stage for a broader debate over reform this summer.   Read More »
ECONOMY

Senate Approves Powell to Fed Board

The Senate confirmed the second of President Obama’s two nominees, Republican Jerome Powell, to serve on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors in a 74-21 vote on Thursday, bringing the board to full, seven-member strength for the...

Read More »
ECONOMY

Senate Approves Stein to Fed Board

The Senate confirmed Jeremy Stein, the first of President Obama’s two nominees to serve on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, in a 70-24 vote on Thursday. Read More »
ECONOMY

Swipe-Fee Rule Hitting Retailers Selling Cheaper Goods

Six months since the amendment from Sen. Dick Durbin , D-Ill., went into effect to reduce the swipe fees merchants pay banks for debit card transactions, the opposite is happening for those whose businesses sell cheaper goods, say ...

Read More »
BUDGET

Ryan: 'I Don't Know' if Budget Puts Higher Burden on Middle Class

House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said on Fox News Sunday that he did not know whether his budget proposal would put a higher burden on the middle class in order to benefit the wealthy. Read More »
CAMPAIGN 2012

Ryan: Romney Will Enact My Budget

House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan , R-Wis., said he expects Romney will enact his budget if he becomes the next president. Read More »

Cordray: Recess Appointment 'Not Affecting Our Decision Making'

Richard Cordray, the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, said that opposition to his controversial recess appointment in January is not going to hold the agency back from its duty to protect consumers. Read More »
ENERGY

Plouffe Doesn't Rule Out Tapping Oil Reserve

With gas prices rising and the choir of critics growing louder, Obama senior advisor David Plouffe defended the president’s energy policy and said the administration has not ruled out opening the country’s Strategic Petroleum ...

Read More »
CAMPAIGN 2012

Plouffe: Romney is 'The Godfather of Our Healthcare Plan'

White House Adviser David Plouffe defended President Obama’s healthcare reform law as it heads to the Supreme Court this week, saying that a decade from now most Americans will embrace it. Read More »
CAMPAIGN 2012

Plouffe: Hillary Clinton 'Would Be a Very Strong Candidate' in 2016

White House adviser David Plouffe said on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday that the immediate goal is to reelect President Obama. But when pressed about speculation that Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton could emerge as De...

Read More »
CAMPAIGN 2012

Rep. Paul Ryan Won't Close the Door to VP Bid

House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., said on Fox News Sunday that it is looking increasingly likely that former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney will win the Republican presidential nomination—and that he would le...

Read More »
COVER STORY

The White House’s Housing Fumbles

The Obama administration's approach to housing policy is a story of missed opportunities, competing priorities, out-of-whack expectations, and a few noteworthy successes. Read More »
WHITE HOUSE

Obama Unveils Housing Plan to Help Veterans, Boost Refinancing

President Obama tried to upstage the Super Tuesday primaries with housing announcements, including a plan to help military personnel who lose their homes through improper foreclosures. Read More »
ECONOMY

Fannie, Freddie Regulator Outlines New Strategy Absent GSE Reform Effort

The Federal Housing Finance Agency – regulator to troubled housing enterprises Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac – on Tuesday issued a significantly revised strategy for the companies’ operations meant to jumpstart lawmakers’ refor...

Read More »
BUDGET

HOUSING: President’s Budget Would Increase Taxpayer Losses on TARP

President Obama’s fiscal 2013 budget proposal touts the administration's recent long-shot mortgage refinancing proposal and says the White House's increased emphasis on the housing crisis will lead to larger taxpayer losses from a...

Read More »
ANALYSIS

Massive Mortgage Settlement a Win for Obama Administration

The $25 billion mortgage-servicing settlement with the nation’s largest lenders is a much needed boost to the Obama administration’s dismal housing record.  Read More »
ECONOMY

QUICK TAKE: Mortgage Lenders Sued for Deceptive Foreclosure Practices

New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced on Friday he filed a lawsuit against Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo accusing them of engaging in “deceptive and fraudulent foreclosure filings.” Read More »
ANALYSIS

Drop in the Bucket, but Expected Servicing Settlement Still a Big Deal

Nearly a year of negotiations between the states and the largest U.S. lenders appear close to yielding a deal that would settle charges of lender misbehavior in servicing mortgages. And while the dollar value might be criticized as ...

Read More »
ANALYSIS

Obama Housing Plan Trumpets Reelection Themes

President Obama’s housing proposal reflects campaign strategy more than a viable policy agenda, as the administration tries to flip the struggling housing market from economic liability to political asset with a long-shot plan tha...

Read More »
ANALYSIS

WALL STREET: Bank Fee is Back, But As Dead As Ever

The bank fee proposal that President Obama is bringing back to life with his State of the Union address seeks to rebalance a sense of justice by requiring the banking industry, which fueled the 2008 financial crisis, to assist a str...

Read More »
WHITE HOUSE

Obama Shoots for Political Score on Housing in SOTU

President Obama seemed regretful last year that he had not taken more aggressive action to turn around the collapsing housing sector. Ever cautious and indecisive, the White House shied away from any bold steps that did not guarante...

Read More »
OUTLOOK

The Insider’s Guide to the New Session

Little is trendier in Washington than talking about how broken Congress is. This won’t be the year Congress does anything to change that. Read More »
NEED TO KNOW: ECONOMY

Making the Housing Crisis Worse?

Washington is awash in discordant, halfhearted, and contradictory efforts to "fix" the troubled market. Read More »
BANKING AND FINANCE

Obama Reelection Strategy Seen in Cordray Appointment

The White House’s bombshell decision to install Richard Cordray at the helm of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau through a questionable recess appointment signaled that the White House is convinced the move benefits Preside...

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ECONOMY

Debt-Ceiling Lift Could Trigger Fight Before Elections

A White House request this week to tap into the third and final round of scheduled increases in the nation’s borrowing limit means the countdown toward another nasty debt-ceiling fight has begun. And it could strike before the Nov...

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CONGRESS

QUICK TAKE: Corzine Tells Congress He Doesn't Know Where Money Went

Jon Corzine, the former New Jersey senator who ran the derivatives broker-dealer MF Global Holdings as its chief executive leading up to its historic failure on Oct. 31, told a congressional panel on Thursday that he does not know w...

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BANKING AND FINANCE

White House, GOP Fight Over Consumer Bureau

The White House this week is ratcheting up its attack against Republicans opposed to a new consumer-protection bureau, aiming to paint the GOP as the party of Wall Street ahead of the 2012 elections. But beyond a media blitz targeti...

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ECONOMY

What If Lehman Happened Today?

Federal regulators still haven’t mapped out the new financial universe, written rules for it, or ramped up enforcement. Read More »
HOUSING

Frank Dispels HUD Secretary Ambitions

Rep. Barney Frank , D-Mass., on Tuesday quashed speculation that he wants the top U.S. housing policy job when he leaves Congress after the 2012 elections. Read More »
ECONOMY

Wall Street Laments Coming Loss of Frank as Foe

Consumer groups are just beginning to grapple with the coming loss of Rep. Barney Frank , D-Mass., as a reliable advocate with a sharp wit and an equally sharp tongue. Wall Street’s doing the same. Read More »
ECONOMY

If Congress Blocks Sequester, U.S. Rating Cut Could Follow

The long-term outlook for restoring the United States’ AAA credit rating suffered a significant setback on Monday with the super committee’s striking failure to make even a modest step toward its mandated goal of reducing the de...

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ECONOMY

Bipartisan Housing Commission Launches With Goal for 2013

For the first time since the housing crisis began, a group of Republicans and Democrats are in agreement that fostering a true economic recovery is inextricably linked to the health of the housing market, and they are vowing to crea...

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ANALYSIS

Obama Student Loan Relief Is Modest But Could Prove Politically Smart

The student loan relief plan President Obama announced on Wednesday is a modest move that doesn't go anywhere near to solving the root of the problem. Read More »
NEED TO KNOW: ECONOMY

GOP Presidential Race Sidesteps Housing Crisis

Republican contenders are ignoring the economy’s No. 1 problem: a depressed market for homes.  Read More »
CAMPAIGN 2012

Huntsman Tries to Define Himself as Anti-Big Bank

GOP presidential hopeful and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman's editorial in the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday on the lingering problems of "too big to fail" financial firms let him toe the Republican line against Dodd-Frank finan...

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BANKING AND FINANCE

Throwing Jabs in Bank-Fee Fight Keeps Durbin in Spotlight

It may be about Round 100, but Sen. Dick Durbin , D-Ill., shows no signs of fatigue in his seemingly never-ending battle with banks over debit-card processing fees. Read More »
ANALYSIS

Can Policymakers 'Fix' the Banking System and Foster Economic Growth?

A recent furniture commercial features a 1989 Queen song that repeats the refrain “I want it all” three times followed by, “and I want it now.” The message could be part of the reason why so much frustration and disappoi...

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ECONOMY

How Officials, Banks Are Preparing for the Looming Euro Zone Disaster

As policy leaders struggle to solve the euro zone debt crisis, banks and their regulators in the U.S. are grappling with how to insulate our financial system but are running into challenges preparing for a world of potential unknown...

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ECONOMY

Dim Hope for Obama Housing Efforts

As President Obama grapples with how to jump start the sputtering housing market—which is expected to be part of his address on jobs before Congress next week—a senior Federal Reserve Board member, Elizabeth Duke, is pushing f...

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ECONOMY

Irene Aid Battle Just the Beginning of Flood Program Woes

Hurricane Irene, which walloped the East Coast over the weekend causing as much as $13 billion in damage, may be a timely wake-up call on the need to reform the nation’s bankrupt National Flood Insurance Program, but is unl...

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FINANCE

Persistent Mortgage-Servicing Problems Continue to Evade Reform

It seems like such a simple problem to solve: Why can’t homeowners on the brink of foreclosure get a straight answer from their lender about whether they can work out a plan to keep their house? Read More »
ECONOMY

With Debt Deal in Hand, When Does Geithner Quit?

With the deal to raise the debt limit successfully reaching the finish line on Tuesday, speculation reemerged that Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner would soon announce his departure. Read More »
BANKING AND FINANCE

Nomination of Cordray Over Warren Doesn't Thrill Right or Left

President Obama’s decision to nominate former Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray to serve as the permanent director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau did nothing to gin up Obama’s base or make Republicans more eager...

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ECONOMY

Bernanke Sidesteps Tug of War Over Taxes, Entitlements

With the debt-ceiling debate taking center stage on Capitol Hill, Republicans and Democrats took turns on Wednesday trying to prod Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke to take a position. Read More »
ECONOMY

Frank Pushes Back Against Liberals on Risk Retention

Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., criticized liberals on Monday for taking the financial services industry’s side in an effort to weaken standards from the Dodd-Frank financial-reform law intended to clean up the securitization markets. Read More »
BANKING AND FINANCE

Sheila Bair Heads to Pew

Sheila Bair, the aggressive outgoing chairwoman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, announced on Friday that she would start a new job at the Pew Charitable Trusts as a senior adviser in the fall. Read More »
ECONOMY

Talk of a Geithner Departure Highlights Administration’s Weak Econ Bench

If Timothy Geithner steps down as Treasury secretary, it would spotlight an increasingly apparent liability for the Obama administration as it searches for a way out of the economic crisis -- the weakness of its bench on economic an...

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WHITE HOUSE

Geithner Considers Leaving Administration, Reports Say

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has indicated to White House officials that he is thinking about leaving the administration after President Obama and Congress reach an agreement to raise the debt ceiling, according to reports. Read More »
BANKING AND FINANCE

Regulators Agree on Capital Surcharges for Systemic Risk Firms

The heads of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, an international bank regulatory body, reached a highly anticipated agreement Saturday to impose additional capital buffers on systemically risky financial firms. Read More »
ECONOMY

Senate Rejects Delay of Debit Card Swipe Fee Rules

In a highly anticipated vote, the Senate rejected by 54 to 45 an amendment from Sens. Jon Tester, D-Mont., and Bob Corker, R-Tenn., on Wednesday that would have delayed a swipe fee regulation from Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill.   ...

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FINANCE

IMF Chief's Arrest Having Immediate Consequences

The arrest of International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn on charges including attempted rape at an upscale New York City hotel was already having immediate policy reverberations on Sunday and threw into question the fu...

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ECONOMY

Geithner Predicts Double-Dip if Congress Fails to Lift Debt Ceiling

Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner said if Congress fails to lift the debt ceiling and the U.S. defaults on its obligations “this abrupt contraction would likely push us into a double dip recession,” painting the most explici...

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HOUSING

GOP Lawmakers Say Warren Played a Bigger Role Than She Claimed

Republican lawmakers demanded on Wednesday that Elizabeth Warren, the unofficial head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, explain documents that seemed to contradict her claims of being only an “adviser’’ in recent mo...

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