Massachusetts Secretary of State
Massachusetts Secretary of State and Chair of the Committee on Presidential Primaries
PROFILE
William Galvin
Guest
FROM William Galvin
To the Point
Home Loans and Easy Money, until Times Get Hard No less an authority than Alan Greenspan, former Chair of the Federal Reserve , called sub-prime mortgages a tool for democratizing credit. Sub-prime mortgages with no down payments are advertised as the road to home ownership for families who can't afford regular loans. They often gamble that they'll be able to re-finance after the house goes up in value, but before new interest rates and higher payments kick in. Now, with the housing market is cooling off, the formula is failing to work for more and more people. Foreclosures are up and they're likely to increase even more. Did stock analysts paint an overly rosy picture of the sub-prime mortgage market to generate investment? Do risky loans to millions of vulnerable borrowers threaten the whole economy? We hear from economists, consumer advocates, a state official who's going after shady lending practices, and John and Delia, two homeowners caught in the sub-prime squeeze.
To the Point
Will Voters Be Singing Christmas Carols in New Hampshire? Next year's presidential primary process may be over exactly one year from today as big states and little states compete to become more important. Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, echoing the familiar complaint that California has become a sort of ATM for candidates looking for big money, has encouraged the Democrats who control the State Legislature to move next year's primary up to February 5. Other big states, including Texas, Florida, Illinois and New Jersey are threatening to do the same thing. Moves by Nevada and Iowa may push New Hampshire up to December of this year, with 11 months still to go before the general election. What would that mean for discussion of issues or the chances of dark horse candidates who don't have massive war chests? Would they still have to shake hands with voters, or would it all be about TV?
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Left, Right & Center
How was the trip? President Trump's travels got less fun as he went from the Middle East to Europe.
To the Point
Will the Senate write a healthcare bill in secret? While Democrats and Republicans argue White House relations with Russia, another question is being decided behind closed doors: who gets help buying health insurance and who doesn't? We hear how the pros and cons are being shrouded in secrecy.
To the Point
Trump plays scolder-in-chief with NATO allies At the opening of NATO’s dramatic new headquarters in Brussels today, President Trump acknowledged that Article 5 — promising that “an attack on one nation is an attack on all” -- has only been invoked one time: in the aftermath of September 11. But the President failed to provide what 27 other Alliance members have been waiting for: a re-commitment by America’s new leader to Article 5. Instead, they got a scolding.