Toomey, Sestak spar over foreclosure crisis

Pennsylvania candidates for Senate trade accusations on mortgage meltdown.

The Pennsylvania candidates running for U.S. Senate are sparring over who is at fault for the foreclosure crisis.

Republican Pat Toomey said Wednesday he tried to step up federal regulation of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac while still a Congressman in 2003.

Toomey gave a five-page speech to reporters outlining what he sees as the role of his opponent, Democrat Joe Sestak, in failing to prevent the housing bubble.

“Congressman Sestak says that there are two different ideologies in this race and he’s right about that. His liberal ideology is one that has put taxpayers on the hook for over a trillion dollars in government bailouts,” said Toomey. “He forced taxpayers to bail out Fannie and Freddie after he voted against rules that might have prevented a need for a bailout.”

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were created by the government to buy up and guarantee mortgages to free up banks to lend more. They back up half the mortgages in the U.S.

Sestak calls Toomeys remarks about his votes “false.”

“No, I went there to try to clean up the mess that Congressman Toomey did,” said Sestak. “And I will continue to oppose efforts of his to give additional aid to Wall Street.”

Sestak has painted Toomey as a friend of Wall Street, who wants to privatize Social Security.