Via a friendly source in the North Dakota media comes this soon-to-be-published op/ed from Kent Conrad which seeks to defend the Senator on the Countrywide Mortgage scandal.

Here’s the text of the email being sent out with the op/ed:

Good afternoon. Below is an op-ed that Senator Conrad would like to submit for publication in your paper.  While I know it is longer than usual, it deals with a complicated issue and deserves as much space as you can afford.  I thank you in advance for your consideration.  Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

Kind regards,

Sean

Sean Neary
Director of Communications
United States Senator Kent Conrad

I’m sure the North Dakota media will give Senator Conrad all the space he needs to defend himself.

I’ve included the entire text of his op/ed in the extended portion of this entry, but here’s three points to take away from this rather self-serving piece of horse puckey:

First, Conrad says that he never intended to ask Mozilo for the loan.  Yet Conrad has been quoted by the Associated Press as saying he “called him [Mozilo] up” to ask for the loan.  Is that an inaccurate quote?  It could be, but even so Conrad still called a high-ranking move-and-shaker in the mortgage industry (Jim Johnson), which isn’t exactly the action of someone who is just looking for a run-of-the-mill loan.  Clearly, Conrad was looking for a deal from someone.  And what are the chances that Conrad would call up Johnson who just happened to be in the same room with the CEO of a major mortgage company who was more than happy to give Conrad a cushy, VIP loan?  Seems like an unlikely coincidence to me, though one that’s very convenient for Conrad who is scrambling to get out of the way of this scandal.

Second, Conrad tries to minimize his savings on the loan as though $10,700 were mere peanuts.  I’m sure there are a lot of North Dakotans, hell a lot of Americans, who would love to have saved $10,700 on their mortgage.

Third, let’s remember that Kent Conrad is not a stupid man.  He knew Countrywide was waiving fees for him and lowering the interest rate on his loan.  He also knew that, after receiving this special deal from Countrywide, he helped grease the wheels for a $300 billion bail-out bill for the mortgage lending industry in which Countrywide is the largest player.

Perhaps the most interesting thing in Conrad’s entire op/ed is the fact that he didn’t mention this bailout legislation at all.  I guess he has no convenient explanation for that.

Conrad and his allies in the North Dakota media (and make no doubt about it, he has a lot of them) will no doubt try to make this go away.  They’ll pretend like it’s no big deal.  “An honest mistake from a dedicated public servant” is how they’ll spin it.  But at the end of the day this is what happened: Kent Conrad got $10,700 in savings and some special treatment on a mortgage from Countrywide Mortgage and then turned around and pushed through legislation potentially worth hundreds of millions of dollars to Countrywide Mortgage.

Perhaps the most appalling thing in this whole mess for this particular North Dakotan is not so much that Kent Conrad allowed himself to be bribed, but that his price was so low.

Conrad should resign.  Now.

Conrad: I Am No Friend of Angelo’s

By Senator Kent Conrad

There have been a series of national news stories that have inaccurately portrayed my personal mortgages with Countrywide Financial. I hope North Dakotans will give me an opportunity to explain the facts and understand that I have never asked for, expected or was aware of any special favors by Countrywide executives.

The facts are that on mortgages with Countrywide Financial, I received terms and rates that were widely available at the time to other borrowers. There were no cuts to the mortgage rates or sweetheart deals – my wife, Lucy, and I filled out paperwork and applied for the loans just as would any other borrower.

In 2002, I worked with a junior loan officer at Countrywide and applied for a loan.  Because I did not know if Countrywide would grant me a loan or what terms they would offer, I also consulted a mortgage broker in Washington, D.C.  He offered me the identical rate as Countrywide.  The mortgage broker was quoted in the Bismarck Tribune earlier this week confirming that fact.

In 2003, I refinanced my mortgage, again at market rates. In 2004, I refinanced again to a 15 year mortgage, again at prevailing rates.  But what we have since found out is that while we were refinancing this 2004 mortgage, Countrywide waived a single point equal to the value of 1 percent of the total loan, or about $10,700.  I never knew that at the time and only found out when a reporter with Portfolio Magazine described an internal Countrywide email to me; in fact, that same Portfolio story reported that Countrywide would often waive points — without the customers knowledge — to keep or attract new mortgages.

In 2004, I also financed an eight unit apartment building in Bismarck, in which I live.  It is true Countrywide did not typically finance buildings with more than four units. But they have told me they did make exceptions when they could sell the loans on the secondary market, which is what they did with my loan.  Research indicates I paid a premium rate on that loan.

People have asked me if I thought it was wrong that I spoke to the CEO of Countrywide Financial before applying for my first Countrywide mortgage in 2002. To be clear – I never called Angelo Mozilo. I called my friend of 38 years, retired Fannie Mae executive and Minnesota native Jim Johnson, for advice on a new mortgage. He happened to be with Mr. Mozilo at the time – and handed the phone to him. All Mr. Mozilo did in that brief conversation was direct me to a junior loan officer at Countrywide. I never met Mr. Mozilo personally, and I’ve never spoken to him again.

In retrospect, I understand why people would think that was not right. Most North Dakotans don’t talk to the CEO’s of their mortgage companies. I should have realized that – and I should have ended the conversation right then and there.

But at the time, I didn’t think I was doing anything inappropriate because I had the exact same experience when I got my first mortgage more than 40 years ago in Grand Forks.  In my late 20s, before having held any public office, I made an appointment to see the head of a lending institution in Grand Forks about a loan.  When I applied for my next mortgage, in Bismarck, I spoke to the head of that lender to be referred to the right person to help us.

Just as I never sought personal favors from North Dakota bankers, I never asked for, expected or was aware of any preferential treatment in the course of my dealings with Countrywide.

More than anything else in my 25 years of public service, I value the trust I have earned from my fellow North Dakotans. I will take every measure possible to ensure them that I sought no favor, expected no favor, or was aware of any favor by Countrywide Financial.

Sincerely,

KENT CONRAD

United States Senator