Bachmann takes aim at ACORN ties to banks

By Kevin Diaz It's been a busy week behind enemy lines for U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann. First came Tuesday's front page profile in the New York Times, which took her to task for various alleged misstatements and inaccuracies. But the Fox News Channel rode to the rescue the next day, with conservative host Glenn Beck putting the Minnesota Republican on the air to talk about her least-favorite non-profit group, ACORN. The Democratic-leaning community group, recently de-funded by Congress, has apparently been shaking down banks for money over the years, or so it appears from Bachmann's reading of the regulatory reports. Bachmann, a member of the House Financial Services Committee, wrote FDIC chairwoman Sheila Bair this week to urge a thorough reexamination of the matter. According to Bachmann's tally, three of the donor banks were in Minnesota: Northeast Bank ($2,000 this year), BankFirst ($250 in 1999), and Firstar (unspecified amount in 1993). The back story: In a brief she has been pressing since last year's financial meltdown, Bachmann argues that a good part of the blame for the mortgage crisis can placed on the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977, which sought to encourage private banks to make loans in low-and moderate-income neighborhoods. While some viewed this as a remedy for discrimination, Bachmann sees it as a government edict to make shaky loans. And one way to avoid the watchful gaze of the government bureaucrats, Bachmann told Beck, is to give money to ACORN: "So a bank, instead of making outright loans to people who are poor credit risks, could give money to ACORN in order to get this positive Community Reinvestment Act rating," she said. The three Minnesota banks, which got ratings ranging from satisfactory to outstanding, told regulators their donations were made to foster economic development in the communities where they do business.