Lee's Summit Tribune - Cleaver Seeks Third Term, Use Experience to Fix Problems

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U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II sees an opportunity in a third term to utilize the bi-partisan friendships he's forged and committee experiences to address critical issues, such as the housing crisis.

"I see now a role for me in terms of trying to deal with an issue that I know about - housing - at a time when it's the number one issue facing the country," Cleaver said during a telephone interview with the Tribune.

Cleaver, 63, of Kansas City, is a member of the House Committee on Financial Services and its subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity. The Democratic incumbent faces Republican challenger Jacob Turk Nov. 4.

Prior to joining Congress, Cleaver served on the Kansas City Council for three terms and then was mayor of Kansas City for eight years.

Cleaver is co-senior pastor at St. James United Methodist Church in Kansas City, sharing those duties with his son, Emanuel Cleaver III. This is the congressman's 35th year at St. James and his last as a full-time minister.

He said the top concern of his constituents is the poor economy.

"People are nervous over what they perceive to be a very, very economically delicate moment for them," Cleaver said. "People are concerned about their retirements and, frankly, they should be."

He said he recently spent time speaking with people who lost their homes. A Lee's Summit woman discussed losing her home to foreclosure in the Lakewood area. Cleaver said people should not wait to seek help when they know they are in danger of defaulting on their mortgage.

He said the House Committee on Financial Services helped put in place a program to address this problem. Mortgage companies can renegotiate the interest rate or the existing debt on a home in danger of default. The loan would be backed by the Federal Housing Administration.

"We saved a number of homes in the (5th) district," Cleaver said.

He defended the federal bailout, saying economists and historians learned from the stock market crash in 1929. That crash was fueled by credit problems. Cleaver said the government had to do something to unfreeze credit.

He said the government bought stock in nine banks to send a message that the banks were strong. Also, $400 billion in bad mortgages were bundled into securities, which people wouldn't touch for fear the securities were worthless. That's why the government took those "toxic securities" off the market, Cleaver said.

Finding jobs for people is another priority for the 5th District, Cleaver said. Congress is scheduled to convene a lame-duck session Nov. 17 to discuss a second economic stimulus package. This one would be to fund public works projects that are "ready to go," Cleaver said.

He said he's spoken with mayors throughout the district and compiled a list of projects, but he would not disclose those projects.

On energy, Cleaver is a member of the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming. He said the rescue package included tax breaks for energy-related economic development projects. Cleaver said he's confident, regardless of who is the next president, that the U.S. will have a "cap and trade" system to cut carbon dioxide emissions. The system would cap emissions, allowing companies that are under their emissions quota to sell their remaining balance to another company.

Cleaver said the No. 1 foreign policy issue is withdrawing from Iraq as soon as possible and redirecting efforts to Afghanistan, "where we should have been from the beginning."

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