Al Franken's Blog, page 132

Fox Business: U.S. Sen. Franken steps up pressure on Ally Financial

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Senator Al Franken Thursday called on half a dozen federal agencies to investigate the foreclosure practices of government-controlled Ally Financial, which has been accused of kicking homeowners out of their homes with fraudulent documents.

"It is crucial that Ally and its employees are held fully accountable for any criminal misconduct," Franken wrote in a letter to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, Attorney General Eric Holder and other agency chiefs.

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The New York Observer: Al Franken Asks Regulators To Investigate Mortgage Mischief

Senator Al Franken is asking the feds to launch investigations into potential criminal activity by Ally and its subsidiary GMAC Mortgage, which have come under scrutiny of late for allegedly using fraudulent foreclosure documents to boot people from their homes.

In a letter to a veritable who's who of financial regulators, Franken says he's "deeply concerned about recent reports of misconduct by Ally Financial and the company's policies and procedures that resulted in the routine filing of false affidavits in foreclosure proceedings." He goes on: "It is crucial that Ally and its employees are held fully accountable for any criminal misconduct."

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Star Tribune: Franken asks feds to investigate foreclosure practices

Sen. Al Franken sent a letter Wednesday to the heads of a half-dozen federal agencies — including the Treasury, Federal Reserve and Justice Department — calling for an investigation of Ally Financial's foreclosure practices.

Franken wrote that homeowners who "have been forced to defend against illegitimate foreclosure actions" should be identified and "must receive proper restitution and compensation."

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KEYC: Sen. Franken Works Toward Disaster Declaration

Senator Al Franken says he's been working with Governor Pawlenty to ask President Obama for a federal disaster declaration. Senator Franken spent time in Owatonna over the weekend touring damage from the excessive flooding. Sen. Franken says,…

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Bloomberg Businessweek: Sen. Franken wants new federal debt collector law

Debt collection practices that target the wrong person or seek money from people who have paid up are behind Minnesota Sen. Al Franken's latest bill.

Franken detailed his federal legislation Monday at the state Capitol. He is expected to formally introduce it later in the week.

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WCCO: Franken Wants New Federal Debt Collector Law

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) ― Debt collection practices that target the wrong person or seek money from people who have paid up are behind Minnesota Sen. Al Franken's latest bill.

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Star Tribune: Franken moves to curb abusive debt collection

Alarmed by abuses in the debt collections industry, Sen. Al Franken said Sunday that he will introduce legislation to ban the use of arrest warrants by private firms and other practices he says are unfair to consumers.

"I was shocked when I read the Star Tribune series about this," said Franken, D-Minn. "… Sometimes you pick up the paper and you say, 'Holy moley, we have to do something about this.'"

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MinnPost: Franken, 2 legislators preview federal, state efforts to rein in debt collection abuses

Crediting a series of articles in the Star Tribune, U.S. Sen. Al Franken and two state legislators announced a two-pronged effort to stop debt-collection abuse at a morning news conference.

At the federal level, Franken said he will introduced legislation that would end such predatory practices as seeking arrest warrants to collect debts and ensuring consumers are better protected against abusive collectors.

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Read the rest of MinnPost: Franken, 2 legislators preview federal, state efforts to rein in debt collection abuses (196 words)

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Brainerd Dispatch: Brainerd airport gets $7 million grant

The Brainerd Lakes Regional Airport received its Christmas present early Thursday.

The present came when U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken and Rep. Jim Oberstar announced $7 million will be spent on infrastructure at the Brainerd airport.

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Foolish and unjust

Dear Friend,

This week, Republicans prevented us from debating the Defense Authorization bill in part because it would have repealed the foolish and unjust "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy that prevents gay and lesbian members of our military from serving openly.

As I said on the floor, there are plenty of logical reasons to make this discriminatory policy part of our past.

"Don't Ask, Don't Tell" kicks out thousands of willing and capable Americans in whom we've invested time and training–at a...