The major broadcast networks refused to take notice on Thursday night of plans by President Obama and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to force the diversification of American neighborhoods and particularly those mainly consisting of wealthy Americans.
With the “big three” of ABC, CBS, and NBC on the sidelines, the Fox News Channel program Special Report offered a full segment on the regulations that host Bret Baier noted has Republicans “charging that President Obama wants control over who lives in your neighborhood and [that] he’s using the power of the purse strings to pursue it.”
Correspondent Rich Edson further explained that “[t]he Obama administration is proposing to use the power of the federal government to foster more inclusive communities to reduce the number of towns and neighborhoods that are almost all rich or poor, black or white.”
By using billions of dollars in federal grants to convince local municipalities, Edson reported that the administration hopes they will, in turn, “build affordable housing and spend on other initiatives in areas supporters say have better schools, other public facilities, and infrastructure, traditionally wealthier places.”
Edson pointed out that those against the plans having argued that the President will threaten “to withhold federal grant money to as they say, push communities that reject his liberal ideology.”
He then played an exchange at a House hearing on Thursday between Republican Congresswoman Mia Love (Utah) and HUD Secretary Julian Castro in which Love demanded that Castro ensure his agency will not “do anything that preempts” municipalities from maintaining their independence to pass and enforce their own building and zoning laws.
The Fox News Washington correspondent concluded by mentioning that “[t]he House has passed an amendment that would halt the HUD regulation, though, even if it were to pass the Senate, the White House would oppose it.”
Here’s more from Joseph Curl of The Washington Times:
President Obama wants to "diversify" wealthy neighborhoods in America, and his administration plans to to force affluent communities to accept affordable housing, such as Section 8.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is set to release new regulations that would set aside taxpayer money to build cheap housing for poor people in richer areas. Under the rules, the federal government would be able to overrule zoning laws of more than 1,200 local governments and force communities to comply.
The transcript of the segment from FNC’s Special Report with Bret Baier on June 11 can be found below.
FNC’s Special Report with Bret Baier
June 11, 2015
6:05 p.m. Eastern[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE CAPTION: There Goes the Neighborhood]
BRET BAIER: Tonight, Republican lawmakers are charging that President Obama wants control over who lives in your neighborhood and he's using the power of the purse strings to pursue it. Is that true? Correspondent Rich Edson is here with an amazing story tonight. Good evening Rich.,
RICH EDSON: Good evening, Bret. The Obama administration is proposing to use the power of the federal government to foster more inclusive communities to reduce the number of towns and neighborhoods that are almost all rich or poor, black or white. Within the next few weeks, the Department of Housing and Urban Development will finalize a regulation to use billions in grant money to influence local governments to build affordable housing and spend on other initiatives in areas supporters say have better schools, other public facilities, and infrastructure, traditionally wealthier places. Opponents charge President Obama is threatening to withhold federal grant money to as they say, push communities that reject his liberal ideology. In a statement, Arizona Republican Congressman Paul Gosart writes, quote, “HUD officials shouldn't be holding hostage grant moneys aimed community improvements based on its unrealistic utopian ideas of what every community should resemble.” In a House committee this morning, the President's HUD secretary defended policy.
REPUBLICAN CONGRESSWOMAN MIA LOVE (Utah): Can I get a commitment from you that you are not going to do anything that preempts what the municipalities are doing in their area? That you are not going to go in and make any zoning laws or any rules that are going to preempt what cities are going to do?
HUD SECRETARY JULIAN CASTRO: Yeah, yeah, I've seen some of this talk about that, congresswoman. This is not about changing –
LOVE: Yes?
CASTRO: That’s right. This is not about changing zoning laws, planning laws, anything like that.
EDSON: The House has passed an amendment that would halt the HUD regulation, though even if it were to pass the Senate, the White House would oppose it. Bret?
BAIER: Rich, thank you.
