ACORN and the Sandlers: A Four Part Review of the Housing Collapse

Yesterday, as the President announced a massive campaign to help stem the ever rising tide of foreclosures, the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), released an ambitious press release on the matter. ACORN then began giving interviews in order to highlight this new fund raisier.

"You want to haul us out to jail? Fine. Let the world see how government
has been ineffective," Bertha Lewis Acorn's chief organizer, said in an interview. "Politicians have helped banks, but they haven't helped families in the way that it's needed, and these families are now saying, enough is enough."

Besides Bertha's selective memory, what struck me as significant about this press release was its sheer audacity and the implied insult to America's poor. Last week, former and current ACORN cronies appeared before Congress to “answer” questions about their role in this financial crisis. To top off a week that must have seemed like homecoming to ACORN; the Sandlers (that's Herb and Marion) were featured on 60 minutes.

For those of you who are not familiar with the ultra liberal, top contributors to the DNC and at least three of ACORN's feeder organizations, here is how 60 Minutes describes it in a piece entitled “World of Trouble”

"In fact, Herb and Marion Sandler were legendary. In 1963, they started Golden West Financial and grew to 285 branches under the name World Savings. The Sandlers' were known for careful, conservative lending. They've given away millions of dollars to charity and started an advocacy group for low income borrowers called the Center for Responsible Lending.

In 2006, just before the housing crash, the Sandlers sold their bank to Wachovia and pocketed $2.3 billion. "

Unfortunately for people like ACORN members in Arizona, one of the hardest hit cities in terms of foreclosures, and the site where President Obama announced his plan yesterday; most of the Sandler's loans were shaky at best. Whistle blower Paul Bishop summed it up for 60 Minutes by describing the whole process as illegal and actually went to superiors with his concerns. Bishop told 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelly that he stated to them:

"We're breaking the law, okay? We're breaking the law. You know we're breaking the law. I know we're breaking the law. What the hell do you think is going on here? You know, you're granting too many people loans who simply can't qualify."

This is where ACORN becomes relevant, according to internal documents, ACORN and World Savings have a long and productive relationship that has spanned many years. The Sandler Family Supporting Foundation has given money to Project Vote, ACORN Housing, American Institute for Social Justice and financed ACORN training. In a four part series we will look at ACORN' s relationship to the Sandlers and World Savings. I will examine the core issues behind ACORN's reasons for not going after one of the worst predatory lenders in the country, and its “strategic” partnership with the Center for Responsible Lending. In conclusion we will review the World Saving backed ACORN housing ventures, Desert Rose in Arizona and ACORN-Glenn Subdivision in Texas.

As Bertha Lewis and ACORN gear up to stage protests around the country, one must wonder what they were doing for the past six years, the evidence will reveal that most of the time was spent making money for people like the Sandler's and their friends in the Democratic party. Their latest endeavor illustrates two key facts, one that ACORN isn't sure that it has it's fingers around Obama's throat quite as tightly as they would like. So, why not do a little street theater, it's always worked before. They will cower him into submission the way they have everyone else with few exceptions. Secondly, like most of its campaigns, there can be no bailout for the homeowners without the "ACORN off the top cut." America's tax payers are now part of one of the biggest schemes in the country, our money is being used to position ACORN for the 2010 and 2012 elections. As evidence has shown, Washington needs less ACORN cronies, not more.

I hope you will follow along this for this week's series as we expose ACORN and their true role in the collapse of America's economy.