Truthdig - Reports - Reagan Didn’t Do It

BOTH SIDES TO BLAME
In 1997 a cabal of powerful Democrats and Republicans enabled the wave of newfangled financial gimmicks that resulted in our current economic collapse. They blocked any effective regulation of the over-the-counter derivatives that turned into the toxic assets now being paid for with tax dollars. Earlier, Ronald Reagan had signed legislation making it easier for people to obtain mortgages with lower down payments. But as long as the banks that made those loans expected to have to carry them for 30 years they did the due diligence needed to qualify creditworthy applicants. The problem occurred only when that mortgage debt could be aggregated and sold as securities to others in an unregulated market.
(TRUTHDIG)