Key Vote NO on Cloture for Mel Watt’s FHFA Nomination

As one of our over 6 million FreedomWorks members nationwide, I urge you to contact your senators and urge them to vote NO on cloture for Mel Watt’s nomination for Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA).

As a 20-year Member of Congress, Mel Watt was a champion of the policies that forced banks into the easy lending practices that led to the housing bubble—and the resulting financial crash of 2008. As FHFA director, Watt would be given the keys to the corrupt and bankrupt Government-Sponsored Entities, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which were among the primary agents of the massively costly collapse. 

Watt has indicated that he continues to support a dangerous government-backed loosening of mortgage lending practices, meaning that if he’s given the controls of the housing market he will send us hurtling faster down the road of another financial calamity (and the inevitable government bailout to follow, which could cost taxpayers hundreds of billions of dollars).

Most importantly, aside from the dangerous policies he has endorsed, Mel Watt has not demonstrated any core competency in the sector that his new job would regulate. His embarrassingly poor performance in his congressional confirmation hearings suggests that he is simply not up to snuff for the job. The power that the FHFA has over the nation’s housing sector—nearly one-sixth of our economy—is troubling enough in itself, but the appointment of an ideologically driven amateur like Mel Watt makes it an exceptionally dangerous proposition.

Thus, I urge you to call your senators and ask them to vote NO on cloture for Mel Watt’s nomination.  We may count their vote as a KEY VOTE when calculating FreedomWorks’ Economic Freedom Scorecard for 2013. The Scorecard is used to determine eligibility for the FreedomFighter Award, which recognizes Members of Congress who consistently vote to support economic freedom.

Sincerely,

Matt Kibbe

President and CEO,

FreedomWorks