News story after news story has warned of the dangers to the housing market. The Democratic response is more regulation. CNBC’s Jim Cramer blasted that strategy in his “Stop Trading” November 7 “Street Signs” segment. He labeled New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo a “communist” who “wants to shut down the mortgage market.”
“[W]itness the fact that right now, the most important man in America for the stock market – the most important man and I mean it negatively is this guy Andrew Cuomo, the New York State Attorney General,” Cramer said. “I’m getting tired of the New York State Attorney General being the most important man in America.”
Then Cramer really went on the attack, even comparing Cuomo to his politicized predecessor Eliot Spitzer. “Cuomo’s about confiscation – genuine communist,” Cramer said. “The Chinese are capitalists, we got a communist.”
The Democratic Cuomo announced November 7 he was expanding his probe into the mortgage industry by sending subpoenas to Freddie Mac (NYSE:FRE) and Fannie Mae (NYSE:FNM) and urging them to conduct a total review of all Washington Mutual Inc. (NYSE:WM) appraisals and mortgages they purchased.
“Why doesn’t he just destroy any opportunity we have to move the $1.25 trillion in houses that are just sitting on the market right now?”
Last week, Cuomo filed a suit against First American Corp. (NYSE:FAF) and its “eAppraiseIT” unit for “allegedly colluding with Washington Mutual to use a list of preferred appraisers to artificially inflate mortgage appraisals.”
“Can I give you the real headline?” Cramer said. “Cuomo says let’s make it harder to get a mortgage, let’s make it harder to lend. Is that really the intent of this Democrat who wants to be president of the universe?”
Cramer referred to him as “General Cuomo,” and “Street Signs” host Erin Burnett said CNBC had offered him an invitation to appear on CNBC, but he has thus far declined.
“Oh, he’ll come on in a second. He’s worse than [Connecticut Attorney General Richard] Blumenthal,” Cramer said. “He’d walk a mile for a camera.”
Earlier this year, Cuomo had been on the warpath against the student loan industry, but has since shifted his focus on the mortgage industry in the wake of the housing crisis.
