Obama Seeks Program to Help Homeowners Avoid Foreclosure

President-elect Barack Obama has called for a new initiative that would help troubled homeowners avoid foreclosure. He has also expressed his desire to help the automobile industry, which has been struggling from high costs of materials and fierce global competition.

Obama, who was interviewed by CBS “60 Minutes,” also said that current efforts to restore economic growth “have not focused on foreclosures and what’s happening to homeowners as much as I would like.”

He said that schemes should be set up so that homeowners and mortgage lenders can negotiate and prevent foreclosure. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. has introduced a $24-billion scheme that would encourage lenders to help homeowners avoid foreclosure, but it has not been taken up yet by Congress.

Obama also stated that the government needs to help revive the distressed auto industry, highlighting the importance of cooperation among management, labor, suppliers and lenders. He also continued choosing key members of his White House staff, appointing Philip Schiliro as his administration lobbyist who will work with Congress to advance Obama’s agenda.

Schiliro has been Obama’s advisor on congressional issues and will take on a leading role during the transition. Schiliro has worked for California Representative Henry Waxman as his chief of staff and has played a significant role in some congressional investigations, including those on baseball players’ steroid use and on the death of former NFL player Pat Tillman in Afghanistan.

In addition, Obama also chose longtime adviser and friend Valerie Jarrett as his White House adviser on public liaison and intergovernmental relations. Jarrett is a Chicago-based real estate developer who heads Habitat Co., the firm mandated by a federal judge to make sure the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) prevents segregation in public housing.

The US President Elect said that Schiliro and Jarrett will become key members of his team that will work for all sectors, including borrowers forced out of foreclosed homes. He highlighted the need to work “together to strengthen our struggling economy and make Washington work for all Americans.”