Fannie, Freddie Bailout Could Cost Taxpayers $25 Billion

New York Times:

WASHINGTON -- The proposed government rescue of the nation's two mortgage finance giants will appear on the federal budget as a $25 billion cost to taxpayers, the independent Congressional Budget Office said on Tuesday even though officials conceded that there was no way of really knowing what, if anything, a bailout would cost.

The budget office said there was a better than even chance that the rescue package would not be needed before the end of 2009 and would not cost taxpayers any money. But the office also estimated a 5 percent chance that the mortgage companies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, could lose $100 billion, which would cost taxpayers far more than $25 billion.

Read the full story here

-OR-

Read about Secretary Paulson trying to sell the rescue to the general public

Read the whole story: New York Times

Comments

[joust1]

I DON'T APPROVE OF HOW MY TAX MONEY IS SPENT NOT ONE LITTLE TINY BIT!!!!!!! NO ONE ASKS US THEY JUST TAKE OUR MONEY AND REWARD THEMSELVES ENDLESSLY WITH IT, NO MATTER HOW THEY SCREW UP.

[JoeBlough]

That's why we have to be careful with our votes. Throw it away and you lose.

[gakabani]

welcome to socialist America. Next what, invite Castro for a conference on how to run a soup line?

[lvogt]

They're lowballing it so we don't freak. I'll bet it's way more than that in the end.

[KOisGod]

What was Iraq going to cost? On the outside, around $50 billion. LoL. That would cover about a month at the present pace.

Republican's - the disease that keeps on taking

[SmootyBooty]

The end cost will be many times greater than the estimates...

[KOisGod]

I'm sure glad I live in a socialized country, where we all share in each others pain and loss, and watch from the street corner, as a few drive by in their S class MB's, on the way to their GOP fundraisers.

[mathme]

But you can feel good knowing that you helped pay for at least some of those MBs.

[humuhumunukunukuapuaa]

To put that in perspective, that is less than what we've spend EACH month in Iraq for the last five and a half years.

Go figure!

[neuron]

This 'free market' thing is emptying my wallet.

[kallopolis]

If the Fed is going to bail these companies out, the tax payers need new gaurantees on the investment. Cap execultive pay, and strong regulations. Otherwise, it is completely hypocritical to allow these compaines to operate as free traders.

[mathme]

After all of these bailouts, how can they call any of the bailed-out institutions 'private' anymore? We should own the airlines by now, as well as these companies.

[biglover]

How about we get our money back after they recoup their losses - or as kallopolis says, smaller salaries for executives and regulation.

[hellboundtrain]

We have all got to understand that Henry Paulson is in place to protect the members of THE FED only, and to be certain that the taxpayers pay for all of their screw ups.

It would be best for all Amricans for THE FED to be dissolved.

[kallopolis]

The taxpayers absolutely need to recoup on this investment. But I worry that the Fed are like the blind leading the blind. They need to stop devaluing the dollar. Start working to fight deflation. (Stop printing money!) And regulate something for once.

Fanny and Freddy must now be considered Federal institutions under Federal control, meaning that their profits (if any) now belong to the taxpayers.

Taxpayers cannot tolerate the hypocracy of free traders who fail at taxpayer expense!

[dbg2]

If my Senators or congressman vote for this bailout then I'm done with them forever. They work for us we can stop this now.... everyone let them know how you feel today.

[JTyroler]

Think how much worse this would be if there had been more of those pesky regulations?

[nevergiveup]

What? This doesn't make sense. Is this irony?

[KillTheMessenger]

Isn't that what they said about the war in Iraq?

:-)

[ProfessorDuh]

Nonsense. The bailout will cost many, many times that. Republicans adore government regulation and intervention, as long as it is devoted solely to preserving and increasing the fortunes of the rich. And they don’t want the working class and the middle class to know that regulation can be used for that purpose, hence their constant hypocritical blather about the “free market.”
The failed mortgage finance companies should be nationalized, with every ounce of private profit stripped from them. That would get the corporate crooks' attention.

[biglover]

It always does cost more than they said. I remember the bailout of the SNLs in the 80s. It turned out to be way more than they said and if I am correct, we are still paying for it. Just bend over folks and take it in the you know what because that's what it will be like.

Anyone who continues to vote republican and against their own interests and doesn't see that these folks don't care about anything but themselves, are just plain ignorant fools.

[hellboundtrain]

Neil Bush was responsible for the Silverado S & L in Denver going down the tubes, and the bailout cost the taxpayers about $1.5 billion at the time. The entire S & L fiasco cost about $1.4 trillion across the entire US.

The Bush family has been very very bad for the US.

Google or WIKI the story!

[Colmore]

These two companies are hosting both political conventions!!! Imagine they will just add the cost onto their bailout package. Some VERY serious auditing needs to be done of these companies, plus all the oil companies and private contractors in the ME.

[ubetchaiam]

$200 million spent on 'lobbying', incedible CEO salaries and bonuses, the main 'concern' Wall street 'confidence', uncertainty about extent of money needed to resolve the issues AND the American taxpayer is supposed to 'bailout' such an enterprise? Since the government is supposedly the guarantor of last resort, why is the government not just taking over these organizations that participated willingly in the 'sub-prime crisis' (read fraudulent activity by the banking industry) and having the shareholders take their lumps? THAT's who is being 'bailed out'.

Corruption of the greatest sort with a capitol 'C'.

[Torus34]

Sec. Paulson says that Freddy and Fannie are sound and have adequate resources.

Sec. Paulson is asking Congress for legislation to permit him to give Freddy and Fannie unlimited money.

Sec. Paulson says he has no intention of using the power to give Freddy and Fannie unlimited tmoney.

I'm confused.

[biglover]

It;s basically the same thing moron Bush said the other day in his press conference. He doesn't believe in bailouts but sure enough that's what we are doing.

Let them go bust. Who cares. It won't hurt the little guy - just the big rich folks.

[allovertheplace]

It would probably make a mortgage out of reach for all but those big rich folks.

[hellboundtrain]

Just sit down and be quiet the professionals in charge will fix everything.


Dissolve the FED!

[trollsbwild]

Any criminal charges? Any consequences for the CEO's?

Crickets.