As expected, the housing bill passed the House with ease today with a 272-152 vote. The final hurdle is to pass the Senate in its revised form and then get past the President. But getting past the President should be no hurdle at all at this point because he indicated that he will not veto the bill in present form. The new legislation could be signed into law as soon as Friday barring any delays. Here is a link to an AP article on the subject. Here is an excerpt as well:
Rescue legislation sailed through the House on Wednesday aimed at helping 400,000 strapped homeowners avoid foreclosure and preventing the collapse of troubled mortgage companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
The 272-152 vote reflected a congressional push to send election-year help to struggling borrowers and to reassure jittery financial markets about the health of two pillars of the mortgage market.
Hours before the vote, President Bush dropped his opposition to the measure, which now is on track to pass the Senate and become law within days.