“A bipartisan group of U.S. senators on Thursday did what the American people have been wanting them to do: They tackled a major problem – one left over from the Great Recession of 2008 – and they agreed on a way to solve it,” The Christian Science Monitor reported in its coverage of yesterday’s 13-9 vote to approve bipartisan housing finance reform legislation. The bipartisan proposal was the result of 18 months of hard work by Sen. Warner and Tennessee GOP Sen. Bob Corker.

“The emergence of this bill from committee represents no small feat. The legislation is baked from scratch – not a warmed-over reauthorization of existing law or some small-bore bill, which is most of what Congress manages in these hyper-partisan times,” Monitor reporter Francine Kiefer wrote. “Anything to do with repairs to the economic crisis is contentious due to the parties' differing views about the role of government. Previous attempts to reform Fannie and Freddie never made it past committee.”

Sens. Warner and Corker “realized from the start that tackling Fannie and Freddie would be ‘a big lift’ and that they needed to build broad support, says Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D) of North Dakota, an early cosponsor. She attributes the bill’s progress thus far to ‘two guys … who have impeccable business credentials who are used to solving problems.’

“Their efforts to bring on board senators with differing views began in September 2012, with a working dinner in a side room of the Capitol …As the work progressed, Corker and Warner built concentric circles of support within the banking committee, Senator Heitkamp recalls. ‘We came in pairs’ – one Democrat and one Republican, she says. 

‘Not everybody got everything that they wanted,’ she says. ‘But as a result, you built not only the product, you built the camaraderie – the fact that we’re now all in this together,’” The Monitor reported. The push ultimately would entail no fewer than 10 hearings, plus many late nights, weekends, and pizza boxes for Senate staffers.

Following Thursday’s 13-9 committee result, industry groups and other stakeholders praised the bipartisan efforts to solve a big, complicated problem.

The U.S. Mortgage Insurers said the bill “recognizes the valuable role of private mortgage insurance to provide creditworthy borrowers with access to affordable and sustainable mortgages, protect taxpayers, and serve lenders of all sizes.”

The Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association also applauded committee passage, saying “We support efforts to reform the housing finance system as success in this area leads to economic growth and job creation as well as the restoration of a competitive mortgage market serving all Americans.”