One of the first presidential candidates - on either side of the aisle - to publicly speak out against the economic distress of the subprime mortgage crisis, Obama put out a statement in September laying out his plans to aid those in distress due to the sub-prime loan crisis.  He wanted to implement a government relief fund, change bankruptcy law and offer a new tax credit on mortgage interest for those that don’t itemize or simply aren’t able to deduct their interest payments from their tax returns.  On Sept. 17, 2007, Obama appeared at the NASDAQ MarketSite to make a speech about the rising foreclosures amongst subprime mortgages.  Obama likened the crisis to Enron and asked that Wall Street make “shared sacrifices” to avoid the same type of “crisis in confidence” that Enron produced.  He urged the government, who had not yet agreed upon a solution, to investigate lender-client relationships and help borrowers come out from under their mortgages.  His plan to aid subprime borrowers is hinged on his overall economical plan to simplify America’s tax code and close the loopholes that corporations enjoy under the current tax code; shifting the burden from the middle class.

Reuters — Obama calls for housing summit on foreclosures (March 22, 2007)
Obama’s campaign Web site — Read Obama’s plan to combat mortgage fraud and subprime loans and create a fund to help homeowners avoid foreclosure.

— Las Vegas Sun new media intern Jenna Kohler and new media managing editor Dave Toplikar compiled this report.