Obama's Weekly Address: Urging GOP Lawmakers To Help Homeowners
By: Mary Bruce
Updated: October 20, 2012
President Obama uses his weekly address to tout his efforts to revive the housing industry, casting himself as a take-charge president and slamming Republicans for standing in the way of progress.
"I never believed that the best way to deal with the housing market was to just sit back, do nothing, and simply wait for things to hit bottom. That would have been a disaster for all the responsible families who -- through no fault of their own -- were struggling to make ends meet," Obama says in a not-so-subtle jab at GOP nominee Mitt Romney.
Instead, the president says he has made helping homeowners a top priority. "Construction workers are breaking ground on new homes in America at the fastest pace in more than four years," Obama boasts. "More homes are being sold. Home values are back on the rise."
The president admits, "we're not where we need to be yet," but says "one of the heaviest drags on our recovery is getting lighter."
Obama urges lawmakers to act on his proposal to help responsible homeowners refinance at today's lower rates. "It's a plan that we know will work. It has the support of independent, nonpartisan economists and leaders across the housing industry. It's a no-brainer that should have passed easily," he says. "But Republicans in Congress banded together and kept this plan from even coming to a vote."
The president accuses Republicans of holding back the economic recovery: "Let's be honest -- Republicans in Congress won't act on this plan before the election. But maybe they'll come to their senses afterward if you give them a push," he says.
