Rep. Laura Richardson

Laura Richardson, CA Representative
Nobody is immune from the lure of the housing ponzi scheme. Not even our elected officials.

And she was a Realtor? Why does this NOT surprise me. (hat tip Tom)
2008-07-01: Would you believe: Laura Richardson -- Realtor?

Oh, my! Now this! She's a very dirty girl!
2008-06-16: Rep. Richardson failed to disclose loan from strip club owner
The latest on the triple-default, single-foreclosure Democratic congresswoman from Long Beach: "Rep. Laura Richardson initially failed to disclose economic interests -- including a loan from a strip club owner -- when she served on the Long Beach City Council, public records show," the Long Beach Press-Telegram reports.

From the Press-Telegram: the loan in question was for $20,000, in 2000, and came from a family trust controlled by Jerry Westlund, who owns the Fantasy Castle strip club in Signal Hill and 13 other strip clubs in seven states. Two years later, Richardson -- who had not yet disclosed the loan -- voted with the council to place Westlund's father on the city's board of examiners. She eventually disclosed the loan in 2004.

2008-05-24: A Congressional Speculator?
(Calculated Risk)

2008-05-23: Housing woes mount for Rep. Laura Richardson
Rep. Laura Richardson, who lost her Sacramento home in a recent foreclosure auction, has also defaulted on properties in Long Beach and San Pedro, records show.

Richardson, D-Long Beach, was able to bring her payments up to date on the Long Beach home relatively quickly, but the San Pedro property lingered in the foreclosure process for almost eight months, and still has a pending auction date.

In her first interview since the news broke Tuesday that her Sacramento home had been foreclosed, Richardson blamed the foreclosure on a miscommunication by her lender. She offered no apologies for failing to make payments on three separate homes and expressed no regret for failing to pay nearly $9,000 in property taxes.