Waxman said in a statement that he saw the problem as "a failure of the Bush Administration and the Republican-controlled Congress to oversee the markets."
But others -- including Clinton -- insist that members of Congress from both parties should be held accountable. The two-term leader rapped Democrats last week for "resisting efforts by Republicans in Congress and by me when I was President" to tighten regulatory and accounting standards on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Republicans are now touting the role that their presidential nominee, Arizona Sen. John McCain, played in advocating stricter regulation of the mortgage giants.
The origins of the current problems lie in three overlapping areas, many critics say, though they often disagree on the order of importance.
The influence of money from special interests -- which flowed into congressional campaign coffers in huge streams -- is cited by some as a prime factor. Those groups and industries, which also funded massive lobbying campaigns, backed what some now see as ill-considered congressional votes that deregulated complex market activities and eventually brought the system to the brink. Others cite failures of the executive branch, including the White House and the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Exhibit A on the use of money to court decision-makers is the record of Fannie and Freddie.
Employees of both provided lavish campaign and other support to both parties through the years, but gave more overall to Democrats.
Current members of Congress have received a total of $4.8 million in donations from the mortgage guarantors, with Democrats collecting 57% of that, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
Fannie and Freddie also paid huge fees to hire lobbyists to woo influential members of both parties. For example, Rick Davis, now a top advisor to McCain, was paid tens of thousands through the years by the mortgage giants.
When Democrats discuss the root causes of the financial crisis, they are likely to cite legislation from several years ago sponsored by former Sen. Phil Gramm, a Texas Republican who has served as an advisor to McCain.
Gramm successfully pushed a bill that deregulated banks and another that deregulated the so-called derivatives market, which has been blamed for fueling the current crisis.
