Is Montgomery qualified to run the FHA?

Strong words and sharp questions from our publisher, Andre Shashaty, in the August AHF:

From what I gather, Brian Montgomery is a nice enough man. My problem is that he does not appear to be qualified to run the housing programs of the United States as assistant secretary for housing at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the post he assumed in June.

I know that standards for government service have fallen steadily in the last few decades. I also understand that George W. Bush is like any president. He rewards the people who helped him get elected, as Montgomery did when he was a campaign advance man.

But this is a time when strong, experienced leadership is badly needed at HUD. The insurance programs of the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) are threatened by rising defaults. The HUD-assisted portfolio is in dire need of good management to preserve as much affordability as possible. Sec. 8 assistance is under the gun and public housing agencies need help from HUD to undertake bold new initiatives.

Few people will miss John Weicher, the previous assistant secretary, who reportedly had trouble making decisions. But industry leaders I spoke to don’t see how Montgomery can do much better. His resume, as summarized by HUD’s PR people, shows precious little management experience, no housing finance or financial management capabilities, and very little achievement outside the Bush-Cheney political operation.

For the record, Montgomery was not available for an interview prior to press time. However, our review of public records was revealing.

Montgomery is 48, at which age most people have 25 or more years of work experience. HUD’s press release goes back only to 1995 in describing his employment history. So, what kind of jobs did he hold before then? HUD isn’t saying.

According to HUD, Montgomery was communications director at the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) and the Texas Department of Economic Development from 1995 to 1999.

He was deputy assistant to the president and cabinet secretary beginning in January 2003, and director of presidential advance from 2001 until 2003. He was chief deputy and director of special events and operations for the 2001 presidential inaugural committee, and director of advance for the Bush-Cheney 2000 presidential campaign.

He is a graduate of the University of Houston, but HUD does not say what he studied, or what degree he obtained.

Montgomery’s comments at his Senate confirmation hearing did nothing to assuage the industry’s concerns. He played up his “humble” roots and his compassion for the poor and elderly. Then he boasted about TDHCA’s efforts to steer assistance to border regions of Texas called colonias.

Montgomery failed to recount for the senators that one of his main duties at TDHCA was to defend it against charges of mismanagement by officials appointed by then-governor George Bush. The director he worked for resigned under pressure, a board member was convicted of bribery, and the whole agency was subject to a major investigation that resulted in legislative reforms in June 2001.

In short, Montgomery looks like a horrible choice on paper, unless, of course, his only charge is to spend less and less money and make HUD less and less relevant....

Read the rest at our main site.