Asleep at the Switch on Mortgages

Government warned of mortgage meltdown-- Regulators ignored warnings about risky mortgages, delayed regulations on the industry. WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Bush administration backed off proposed crackdowns on no-money-down, interest-only mortgages years before the economy collapsed, buckling to pressure from some of the same banks that have now failed. It ignored remarkably prescient warnings that foretold the financial meltdown, according to an Associated Press review of regulatory documents.