CA-Sen: Barbara Boxer, Countrywide Home Loans and Ethics

Senators Christopher Dodd, Democrat from Connecticut and chairman of the Banking Committee, and Kent Conrad, Democrat from North Dakota, chairman of the Budget Committee and a member of the Finance Committee, received loans from Countrywide Financial through a little-known program that waived points, lender fees, and company borrowing rules for prominent people. (Friends of Angelo Mozilo)

California U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer, Chair of the Select Committee on Ethics has some explaining to do.

Public records show that Sen. Barbara Boxer, chair of the Select Committee on Ethics, needs a training class on conflicts-of-interest.

Deeds of trust compiled by Leslie Merritt and Frank Perry of the Foundation for Ethics in Public Service show that the California Democrat and her husband, Stewart, held seven mortgages with Countrywide, the company which gave VIP mortgage discounts to influential customers, including Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-CT, and Sen. Kent Conrad, D-ND.

Senate rules prohibit members from accepting deals not available to other borrowers. The loans and properties associated with them are not listed on her personal financial disclosure forms because she deemed them non-income generating, the type exempted from public airing.

Countrywide was once one of the biggest home lenders before the housing collapse, so it is not surprising for the couple to have financed home purchases through the company. But it should raise red flags that she investigated two colleagues for receiving preferential treatment from Countrywide without first disclosing the full terms of her loans, which greatly outnumbered those of the people whose conduct was scrutinized.

Boxer has said she received no preferential treatment and that she paid off the loans prior to the investigation. But even if she did not receive preferential treatment, she should have recused herself from proceedings to avoid the appearance of self-dealing.

Read the entire piece.

Barbara Boxer should really come clean and disclose all of her dealings (the complete terms of the loans) with Countrywide Home Loans and Angelo Mozilo.