It’s Sunday, which makes it a good day to reflect on man’s follies. No where are man’s follies more visible than in the halls of any government in the world. We Americans certainly have countless examples in our government. While browsing the web this morning, I came across an article titled Idiot of the Week, in which the author had a hard time deciding between John Kerry, for his use of bible quotes to support global warming, and Debbie Wasserman Schultz, for accusing Scott Walker of abusing women. He went with Schultz. But allowing words to escape one’s lips in uncontrolled fashion is a prerequisite for being a politician, is it not? So, your humble observer of the asylum we all have to live in decided to dive into the bowels of the internet to see he couldn’t find a better candidate for “Nut Case of the Week”. I wanted to find an example of a politician doing more than just talking nonsense. I was going to look for a politician who went beyond words and put his or her particular insanity into action. It didn’t take long. I present you:
Nut Case of the Week Award Winner
Please meet Missouri’s Republican Congressman, Blaine Luetkemeyer. He looks harmless enough, right? Don’t be deceived. This man may be certifiably insane.
Before I explain what Congressman Luetkemeyer did to win this week’s award, let me ask you, dear readers, a question. How many of you remember the collapse of the housing bubble in 2007 and the collapse of the subprime mortgage-backed securities bubble in 2008? You all do, right? Of course you do! Well, our “Nut Case of the Week” has apparently had a memory lapse. Either that or he is indeed insane. The evidence couldn’t be more clear. This past Wednesday Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer introduced the following bill
H.R.5148 – Access to Affordable Mortgages Act of 2014
Beta Congress,Gov provides this summary of the H.R. 5148:
Access to Affordable Mortgages Act of 2014 – Amends the Truth in Lending Act to exempt from property appraisal requirements certain higher-risk mortgage loans of $250,000 or less if such a loan appears on the balance sheet of the creditor of the loan for at least three years.
Exempts certain individuals required to make such reports from penalties for failure to report any appraisers reasonably suspected of failing to comply with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice, of violating applicable laws, or of otherwise engaging in unethical or unprofessional conduct.
Amends the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989 to exempt such higher-risk mortgage loans from property appraisal or evaluation standard requirements.
Zero Hedge had this to say:
So with HR 5148, Congress aims to exempt certain ‘higher-risk mortgages’ from property appraisal requirements.
Curiously, this legislation reverses several provisions in the 1968 ‘Truth in Lending Act’.
It’s as if Congress is now anti- ‘Truth in Lending’ and pro- ‘whatever the hell gets the money on the street’.
It seems the Great Recession was enough for “Nut Case of the Week”. He’s going to go for another Great Depression.
Conservative Hideout 2.0 use to have a regular series on “Useful Idiot” of the week and Always on Watch has her regular Saturday “Nincompoopery Poll”. So, maybe Asylum Watch could have a “Nut Case of the Week” award on Sundays and you all could offer your are own alternatives to my choice. Let me know if that would interest you.
Well, that’s what I’m thinking. What are your thoughts?
Asylum Watch 
Jim, Having worked in banking during those schizophrenic days when the government and the banks colluded to turn the housing and mortgage markets upside down (pun intended) it would not surprise me if this gross stupidity and arrogance is not dismissed in Washington for what it is. A phoney appraisal was the lynchpin for underwriting to allow a contract to move forward forget sales, refinances poured untold billions into the economy which turned untold taxes into Washington ‘s coffers. The house of cards still stands.
Great pun! I agree that our boys and girls in D.C. are perfectly capable of making the same mistake a second time.
http://www.dcclothesline.com/2014/09/07/homeland-security-bombshell-president-barack-obama-eligible-work-united-states/
A feature called “Nut Case of the Week Award”? Good idea!
We’ll se how it goes, AOW. For it to work, readers will need to offer their alternatives.
Sounds good to me! Nut case of the week.. love it.
One thing is for sure. There’ll never be a shortage of candidates.
Sounds like an overwhelming task my friend. How in the world can you pick just one? Guess that’s why you watch over the asylum and not me.
Being insane gives me anadvantage, my friend.
Count me in! My vote this week would go to Auntie Debbie Wasserman-Schultz.
She’s likely to be in the running most weeks, in my opinion.