Secretary Paulson's New Gig: Fannie And Freddie PR Man

Bank examiners from the Federal Reserve and the Comptroller of the Currency are inspecting the books of the nation's two largest mortgage finance companies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, as the Bush administration prods Congress to approve a plan that would enable it to inject billions of dollars into the companies.

Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr., in a meeting on Monday with reporters and editors of The New York Times, said the Fed and the comptroller's office began combing the books of the two companies after their declining stock prices caused widespread anxiety in the market. The two companies guarantee or own almost half of the home mortgages in the United States. The Bush administration is hoping they can be the engine that pulls the housing market out of its yearlong slide.

Read the full story here

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Read more about Secretary Paulson and the lending crisis:

::Vince Farrell: Fannie and Freddie in Layman's Terms
::No More Bailouts Expected

Comments

[themodernleader]

This bailout is a continuation of the American economic policy that we can cover over our economic problems by simply printing more money. Soon our debt will come due and money will flood our country in buying up everything that is not tied down. Our entire country will be foreign owned. Our own citizens will be unable to afford to purchase the necessities of existence for the dollar will be devalued to a tenth of its 2000 value.
The pattern of selfish and incompetent management of this nation's mission and mandates is bringing our organization to wreck and ruin. We are near the end of the mild prolonged crisis that is terminating this form of governance. Another experiment in people self rule appears near its end.
The failure of our present democratic leadership and government of laws will most likely be replaced by a charismatic leader who will make changes through the influence of mobs and force of arms at the loss of our self governance and negative, personal liberties.
No people are going to be thrown into bondage without a fight.

[IntellectuallyHonest]

Does anyone out there think we may be headed for a complete economic shutdown within the next few months or year?

[hellboundtrain]

Oh Lord you all! I just hope that they fix these darn immigration laws so that the Chinese, or the Russians, or the Brazillians can come here and buy up our homes and then we can go over to China, or Russia, or Brazil to get a job!

[Rule Of Law]

I've waited six hours to see this--through waiting!

part1

Come on guys...by now you'd think we'd all be aware when Bush and Cheney are trying to pull another fast one on us.

Fannie and Freddy don't need a bailout, or even loans to tide them over. Top folks there have said that they have enough cash to get through this on their own. So---the question you have to ask yourselves is; Why are the FED and Wall Street and Bush and Paulson (ex CEO of Goldman-Sachs!!!) so determined to shove money down Fannnie's throat if they don't really need it?

With control of over $5.5 trillion in mortgage assets, Fannie dominates the market, and has a chunk of business that Wall Street (Remember them--the guys that gave us the Sub-Prime Mortgage Meltdown and Predatory Loan Scam in the first place?) has Always lusted after and never could touch. They are one reason why we are not yet in a full FED/Goldman created Depression, just like the last one.

[Rule Of Law]

part2
FNM and FRE are also two of the very last vestiges of FDR's middle class creating New Deal, and as such, Neo-Con targets for destruction! It very well could be that monetary policy since 2001 has been set just to bring us to this point--A public outcry against these two institutions and a massive Privatization of their assets leading to total economic chaos!

Were the Execs overpaid? Hey--are the execs at every Fortune 500 Co. overpaid? Did they rig the system? Sure, like all those guys did, and do. Should they be canned and held legally accountable while their loopholes are closed? Absolutely!!!

Does their greed, and perhaps even collusion with the Bush Regime, in making this mess in the hopes that the Public outrcry will help them achieve their goal of breaking them up mean that we should allow Wall Street to rip us off yet one more time?

I've got a classic Porsche. If the carburetors get clogged, do I drive down to the Ford dealer and let him take it and put me in a Focus?

[MetalCanuck]

Actually FDR's "New Deal" devalued the dollar 70 percent at the time, caused the Depression to last YEARS longer than it should have. A "New Deal" now would be inflationary as it was then and it will bring us down faster. Fannie and Freddie should never have happened in the first place...they print money out of thin air just like all the other banks..thats why we are in the trouble we are in now. WE NEED real gold backed money again if we are to have a stable market.

[MetalCanuck]

I also forgot...I do agree with some regulation on banks though.

[Okieborn]

Is there no end to these money mongers !!
My God can't the congress stand up and do the right thing and put a thumb on Paulson and the money laundering !!!!

[elpollo]

I'm a plumber. When someone pays me to do a job, I do it and do it right, Congress is the same way. Really quite laudable.

[Rule Of Law]

part2
FNM and FRE are also two of the very last vestiges of FDR's middle class creating New Deal, and as such, Neo-Con targets for destruction! It very well could be that monetary policy since 2001 has been set just to bring us to this point--A public outcry against these two institutions and a massive Privatization of their assets leading to total economic chaos!

Were the Execs overpaid? Hey--are the execs at every Fortune 500 Co. overpaid? Did they rig the system? Sure, like all those guys did, and do. Should they be canned and held legally accountable while their loopholes are closed? Absolutely!!!

Does their greed, and perhaps even collusion with the Bush Regime, in making this mess in the hopes that the Public outrcry will help them achieve their goal of breaking them up mean that we should allow Wall Street to rip us off yet one more time?

I've got a classic Porsche. If the carburetors get clogged, do I drive down to the Ford dealer and let him take it and put me in a Focus?

[Rule Of Law]

part1
Come on guys...by now you'd think we'd all be aware when Bush and Cheney are trying to pull another fast one on us.

Fannie and Freddy don't need a bailout, or even loans to tide them over. Top folks there have said that they have enough cash to get through this on their own. So---the question you have to ask yourselves is; Why are the FED and Wall Street and Bush and Paulson (ex CEO of Goldman-Sachs!!!) so determined to shove money down Fannnie's throat if they don't really need it?

With control of over $5.5 trillion in mortgage assets, Fannie dominates the market, and has a chunk of business that Wall Street (Remember them--the guys that gave us the Sub-Prime Mortgage Meltdown and Predatory Loan Scam in the first place?) has Always lusted after and never could touch. They are one reason why we are not yet in a full FED/Goldman created Depression, just like the last one.

[olephart]

Fannie Mae has been around since 1938 and the New Deal. The Republicans have never forgiven FDR for saving the Nation's butt from their Depression and Hitler. Reagan started dismantling New Deal Legislation with the deregulation of the Banks and Savings and Loans. That was a $300,000,000,000 disaster. Now this financial catastrophe ala Bush, Gramm et.al. will cost untold billions to clean up.

The punch line is that about 40% of Americans still are thinking about voting Republican! Didn't Einstein define insanity as "doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."

[MetalCanuck]

HE NEVER saved us from the depression, he devalued the money by 70 percent...for everyone. I would vote for Ron Paul but NO other besides Kucinich...so I am not a Neo Con. If you study real economics..not the stuff they teach in "school:" you will know this.

[Rule Of Law]

Fannie and the GI Bill built this country and the middle class that makes it hum, and makes the elites wealthy beyond their dreams.

Without those 2 things, we would not have become the economic power that we once were. Nothing takes the place of a Real ownership society and the investment a person feels in it when they own a piece. They don't want us to anymore. End of story.

[joebaggadonuts]

Maybe they don't want us anymore because we have grown stupid enough to be suckered by right wing radio.

[andyboy]

Like giving a spoiled brat 17 yr old a brand new car immediately after he recklessly crashes one.

Amewrica's new mantra......Cheaters always prosper.

[darthdarcy]

Paulson is a part of the problem he was at Goldman Sachs before getting to put his hands right into the U.S. Treasury directly...

Deregulation is destroying America it's economic cannibalism...

[Rule Of Law]

part1
Come on guys...by now you'd think we'd all be aware when Bush and Cheney are trying to pull another fast one on us.

Fannie and Freddy don't need a bailout, or even loans to tide them over. Top folks there have said that they have enough cash to get through this on their own. So---the question you have to ask yourselves is; Why are the FED and Wall Street and Bush and Paulson (ex CEO of Goldman-Sachs!!!) so determined to shove money down Fannnie's throat if they don't really need it?

With control of over $5.5 trillion in mortgage assets, Fannie dominates the market, and has a chunk of business that Wall Street (Remember them--the guys that gave us the Sub-Prime Mortgage Meltdown and Predatory Loan Scam in the first place?) has Always lusted after and never could touch. They are one reason why we are not yet in a full FED/Goldman created Depression, just like the last one.

[Rule Of Law]

part2
FNM and FRE are also two of the very last vestiges of FDR's middle class creating New Deal, and as such, Neo-Con targets for destruction! It very well could be that monetary policy since 2001 has been set just to bring us to this point--A public outcry against these two institutions and a massive Privatization of their assets leading to total economic chaos!

Were the Execs overpaid? Hey--are the execs at every Fortune 500 Co. overpaid? Did they rig the system? Sure, like all those guys did, and do. Should they be canned and held legally accountable while their loopholes are closed? Absolutely!!!

Does their greed, and perhaps even collusion with the Bush Regime, in making this mess in the hopes that the Public outrcry will help them achieve their goal of breaking them up mean that we should allow Wall Street to rip us off yet one more time?

I've got a classic Porsche. If the carburetors get clogged, do I drive down to the Ford dealer and let him take it and put me in a Focus?

[Rule Of Law]

I apologize for this appearing twice. It took huffpo forever today.

[katok]

Right...25 billion, isnt that the same figure they threw out for the Iraq war? 25 Billion may be the first downpayment, but it will not be the last. Not against the 500 trillions in bad debt they hold. Save the homeowner and these behemoths will not need help. Let the borrowers die on the vine and 25 billion will just be drop in the bucket to what this boondoggle will cost. If you are using taxpayer $ to do this, why not save the taxpayer first Henry?

[trollsbwild]

Time to open the books to see where all the money went. Not just for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and Indybank, but our government too.

FRAUD!

[Chavez08]

Bottom line; Neoliberalism ("Reaganomics", "neo-classic..") is destroying the planet. All this system is good for is concentrating 99% of the wealth to 1% of the population, endless war, poverty, despair and creating slave-labor empires - and it's "Mission Accomplished".

We once had Social Democracy in America (before Reagan) and it worked very, very well. We need it again.

[suziq]

Everybody understand that this is what happens when you de-regulate??!! The crooks creep back into the system. Thanks ronniereagun - America is becoming the third world nation of your dreams.

[hellboundtrain]

DISSOLVE THE FED!

There has been more pain caused to the greatest number of Americans because of this institution over the years than any other!

[MetalCanuck]

Thats what Ron Paul wanted but instead people voted for the candidates who will make it worst.

[trollsbwild]

What about the CEO compensation? Do these guys still get to earn between $12 to $19 mil a year, despite their incompetence? Where is accountability?

[Chavez08]

CEOs get huge incentives for eliminating U.S. jobs. They'll be paid well.

[Idiocracy]

I am leaving.
Its time for a mass exodus.. Maybe Denmark.

[Rule Of Law]

I recently read a report that said the happiest people in a western style country are in Iceland.

[StephenBarry]

I moved to the UK 5 years ago and I can tell you honestly, it was the BEST thing I have ever done.

[studlyguy]

Same story screw the American people,save the corporations,their arrogance is sickening,here is more frightening reading. http://www.shadowstats.com/article/292