SNance

Critics of the fraud committed by the nation's largest banks in the so-called "robo-signing" scandal are calling Thursday's settlement deal just the first step in achieving justice for wronged U.S. homeowners. State and federal officials announced the $26 billion settlement over the banks' fraudulent foreclosure practices which led to wrongful foreclosures nationwide. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder led the announcement at a Washington news conference and says the settlement will be a step... Read Full Story

by Cora Currier, ProPublica Last week, ProPublica and NPR raised questions about a risky investment strategy at Freddie Mac that would pay off if homeowners stayed trapped in expensive mortgages. It's just the latest example of how government-owned Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae have frustrated many by not putting homeowners first. Fannie and Freddie are required to help homeowners while earning profits so they can pay back the taxpayers who bailed them out. Here is our guide to the little-known... Read Full Story

This article was published by the Center for American Progress . By Catherine Woodiwiss , Sally Steenland On January 24 CAP hosted an event, “God and Politics: Examining Religion in the 2012 Elections.” Panelists included Joanna Brooks , columnist for Religion Dispatches and author of the upcoming book The Book of Mormon Girl: Stories from an American Faith ; Shaun A. Casey , professor of Christian ethics, Wesley Theological Seminary and author of The Making of a Catholic President: Kennedy v... Read Full Story

House Republicans didn't let it stay dead for long. Just weeks after President Obama rejected construction of a massive 1,700-mile international oil pipeline, Republicans on the House Energy and Commerce Committee voted to resurrect the project Tuesday. The committee approved the North American Energy Access Act (H.R. 3548), a new legislative attempt to outmaneuver the president on the Keystone XL pipeline project. Obama last month rejected the controversial, $7 billion pipeline which would... Read Full Story

The manager of President Obama's re-election effort is defending the campaign's decision to back a so-called super PAC, despite the president's fierce criticism of the Supreme Court decision which led to the proliferation of such shadowy influence groups. The Obama campaign is supporting Priorities USA, a super PAC founded by two former Obama White House aides, says Jim Messina in an email to supporters sent late Monday night. "We decided to do this because we can't afford for the work you're... Read Full Story

Slogging through a GOP primary season which increasingly looks to be long and contentious, Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney must solve a key condundrum, according to a New York-based political science professor. Will Romney temper his message? Or will he continue hitting his top Republican rival, Newt Gingrich, hard? Either strategy has drawbacks, says political theorist and Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC) political science professor Geoffrey Kurtz. Romney's dilemma... Read Full Story

A recent crackdown by Egypt's rulers against international human-rights and pro-democracy groups operating in the country means Egypt could lose $1.3 billion in U.S. military aid which it receives annually, according to a key Senate chairman. Although Egyptians captivated the world last year with massive pro-democracy protests which led to the ouster of their longtime autocratic ruler, Hosni Mubarak, the nation's transition to democracy has not been smooth, says Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt... Read Full Story

The federal report out Friday on January's employment data contains good news -- including for President Obama's chances at re-election. But, despite the addition of 243,000 new jobs last month and another drop in the nation's unemployment rate, many -- not even all of whom are political opponents of the president -- see a long way yet to go. "Today's jobs report is encouraging, but we should judge it against the overall sluggishness of the economic recovery and a persistently large jobs... Read Full Story

With details soon to become public about a settlement between state attorneys general and big banks implicated in the huge, national "robo-signing" scandal, President Obama should make clear the deal can't amount to less than $300 billion from the banks, a prominent homeowner- and corporate-accountability advocate says. All 50 state attorneys general have been seeking a settlement with the nation's five largest banks to address their foreclosure practices, such as the filing of thousands of... Read Full Story

In spite of a potential presidential veto, a group of Republican senators want to overturn deep cuts to U.S. military spending that they and their GOP colleagues had agreed to just months ago as part of last summer's agreement to reduce the federal debt and deficit. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and other Senate Republicans are unveiling legislation that would protect the Pentagon’s budget from the budget cuts -- known as "sequestration" -- required in the debt deal, forcing greater cuts in... Read Full Story