Maxine Waters

Democrat Maxine Waters represents California's 35th district in the U.S. Congress. She has been a member of the House of Representatives since 1991.House.gov: Maxine Waters biography

On August 2, 2010 a formal case was filed against Waters by the House Ethics Committee for advocating for a bank to which her husband has ties. A trial is set for the fall, which will focus on a meeting that Waters set up with treasury officials to bail out OneUnited Bank. The bank subsequently received 12 million dollars from the government.http://www.latimes.com/news/sc-dc-waters-bank-20100802,0,432044.story

Waters claims that she did nothing wrong, and that her sole intention was to fight for small, independent banks.http://www.latimes.com/news/sc-dc-waters-bank-20100802,0,432044.story

On February 11, 2009, during a House Financial Services Committee hearing on how eight major banks spent bailout funds received from the government, Waters was highly critical of the banks' practices. She criticized the bank CEOs, whom she referred to as "captains of the universe" for raising credit cardholders' interest rates after receiving bailout finds and stated that she had always "been in disagreement with the banking industry."Risky Business (U.S. News): Maxine Waters: Banks Screwing Credit Card Users... (February 11, 2009)

In January 2009, Waters called Bank of America and spent two hours attempting to find the right department to speak with, in attempt to help two constituents receive loan term modifications. She was eventually connected with the refinancing department. The department number was a pre-recorded message, which said to check the Bank of America Web site to determine eligibility for refinancing, and then disconnected the call.Consumerist: Bank Of American Puts Congresswoman On Hold For Two Hours (January 25, 2009)

Before entering politics, Waters was a teacher and volunteered for Head Start, a program helping underprivileged children. In the mid-70s, she joined the California State Assembly, where she remained until being elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.House.gov: Maxine Waters biography

Waters supports positions including abortion rights, alternative energy, gun control and increased funding for education.Ontheissues.org: Maxine Waters Waters also co-sponsored a bill to impeach U.S. Vice President]] [[Dick Cheney. She also stirred controversy in 2008 for a comment she made about "socializing" the oil industry by having the government-run all oil companies. Ontheissues.org: Maxine Waters Digital Journal: Maxine Waters Out of the Closet as a Socialist? (May 27, 2008)