Posted by
Always To The Right on Tuesday, October 21, 2008 12:24:30 PM
The New York Times sets its sights on an unfamiliar target — a liberal Democrat.
Chris Dodd has still not released his mortgage records to the public to
show how much money his “Friends of Angelo” loans saved him on two
different properties financed by Countrywide, despite his promises to
do so. The Times’ editorial board wonders what excuses Dodd will offer
next:
After reports emerged in June about him having received
favorable treatment on two home mortgages from the Countrywide
Financial Corporation, Senator Christopher Dodd, a Democrat from
Connecticut, promised that he would release documents to support his
contention that he never benefited financially from the terms of the
loans.
The senator has failed to keep his promise, and his excuses are wearing ridiculously thin. …
The Senate Ethics Committee is investigating whether the terms of
the loans violated its rules on disclosing gifts. But such an
investigation does not preclude Mr. Dodd from being candid.
Mr. Dodd admits he was extended “courtesies” by Countrywide. It’s
time for him to extend some courtesy to his constituents and the rest
of the nation and release the records on the mortgages, without delay.
An honorable man would have released the records immediately after
the cozy relationship got uncovered. On the other hand, an honorable
man would never have put himself in that position in the first place.
Accepting gift mortgage rates under a VIP plan from a company Dodd
helped regulate is such an obvious conflict of interest that it should
result in criminal prosecution, not an Ethics Committee ruling.
Even the Times wants to know what Dodd’s hiding about Countrywide