ms. schwartz, how much pushback has there been against the new programs? guest: i think it's important to note, this is not a wide, sweeping, subsidized government program. this is someone who owns a credit risk of a higher rate and they are still getting the same borrower, who is current, and offering a lower credit -- a lower rate to make a loan. so it is not particularly a taxpayer subsidy, matching government reductions. i think that's an important distinction. he's right. we've all tried to revamp our lifestyles and this has been a difficult economy but we need to unlock the housing market through refinances. we need to fix loans where possible through modification so everyone is a winner and communities get stable. host: there are several people who have disagreed with this program. eugene robinson in a column today talks about mitt romney's disagreement with the program. he wrote, at wednesday's debate, romney said the obama administration has tried to hold off on foreclosure, on the foreclosure process, the normal market process. asked if he would

ms. schwartz, if you could explain what impact the modification process has on your credit, i would be greatlyreciative. thank you. guest: there are two things going on. i am not sure if you had a change in expenses or a drop in your income, but there is an option for you to get a modification if you are in imminent default come experiencing hardship and paying a much higher amount of your income to your current mortgage because you had a drop in income. modifications will hurt your credit because you will be delinquent at some point when you are getting a restructured. typically people are delinquent, although there are exceptions to let current borrowers get a modification. we can look into that as well. i would say people who are current, it is less prevalent. the average person is behind over one year on their mortgage before they can sometimes even get a modification, so it is a real range. the average time to get to modification is now 600 days. i do encourage you to work with your lender on that because it sounds like you have a hardship and you may qualify. be persistent and use housin

ms. schwartz: today the house of representatives in a bipartisan way will pass legislation that builds on this effort and expands job opportunities for our veterans. it will expand the maximum tax credit available to employers to hire disabled veterans who have been unemployed for six months and it strengthens the hiring tax credit to benefit both short-term and long-term unemployed veterans. this is a huge victory for our brave men and women and their families who have sacrificed so much for our nation and our freedom. as we wind down two wars, it is our duty and our honor to support our veterans and better ensure that they have good, stable jobs when they return to home. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from arkansas rise? >> to speak to the house for one minute. revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. >> madam speaker, i rise today to honor mckey foods a. company in my district, mess known for its little debbie snack cakes. they are a role model for companies across the country. mr. womack: excellence in the treatment of its

ms. schwartz, do you agree in the area of changing the legislation?> abusive and repetitive, should not be permitted, already under protection, but it is very important to be allowed an area of a business relationship to alert people of opportunities to fix a long before they go to foreclosure. >> mr. alterman? >> we do not want to make repetitive calls the and we would have no problem with the language that would do that, but i would like to make one comment made earlier that airlines already have the ability to notify people. our industry, unfortunately, is one step removed. the phone numbers that are given are given to retailers such as l.l. bean, and we get it in the same transaction. i can argue with a safe -- straight face that it constitutes consent and we want the bill to make it clear is we want to tell someone that a package is ready. >> thank you. mr. doyle. >> as i said in my opening remarks, i think the bill was well-intentioned, but we have a lot of work to do here. if a person provides their phone number as a means of contact at any poi