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Senate may pass mortgage aid plan as soon as today
(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-06-25 23:52

WASHINGTON -- A mortgage aid plan is on track for passage in the Senate as soon as today. The massive foreclosure rescue bill cleared a key Senate test yesterday by an overwhelming margin, with Democrats and Republicans both eager to claim election-year credit for helping hard-pressed homeowners.


Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, left, accompanied by Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., gestures during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, June 24, 2008, regarding the housing and mortgage crisis on Capitol Hill in Washington. [Agencies]

The mortgage aid plan would let the Federal Housing Administration back $300 billion in new, cheaper home loans for an estimated 400,000 distressed borrowers who otherwise would be considered too financially risky to qualify for government-insured, fixed-rate loans.

An 83-9 vote put the plan on track for Senate passage as early as Wednesday, but President Bush is threatening a veto, and Democrats are fighting each other over key details. Those challenges will probably delay any final deal until mid-July.

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