A rare victory for common sense, as lawmakers lose interest in a proposal to give government loans, or possibly outright checks, to people who took out mortgages they couldn’t afford:

That also was the theme of the Capitol Hill summit convened by Sen. Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.), who called in government regulators, consumer advocates and executives of major lending firms to discuss the mortgage crisis.
After the summit, Dodd said the participants agreed that “concerted efforts” should be made to prevent foreclosure, including loan workouts and refinancings that reduce borrowers’ loan payments.
Some Democrats in the Senate have raised the possibility of direct government intervention to help sinking borrowers. Dodd, who is chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, has backed away from the idea.
“I’m not overly anxious to legislate,” he said Wednesday.

The article notes that some analysts have estimated that more than 2 million people nationwide, including 460,000 in California, could lose their homes because they can’t make their payments. That’s a sad situation, but throwing tax dollars at the problem doesn’t seem like much of a solution. It seems more like a formula to encourage even further irresponsible purchases by home buyers, if Uncle Sam is out there waiting to pick up the check.

I’m a little surprised that Dodd didn’t try to use a bailout as a signature issue in his presidential bid: Vote for me and I’ll use “taxes on the rich” to pay for the house you can’t afford.