According to his memoirs, as secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson left the Oval Office on Sept. 4, 2008, the last thing then-President George W. Bush said about troubled the mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac was "we have to make clear that (conservatorship) is transitory, because otherwise it looks like nationalization." Two days later, conservatorships were formally imposed upon Fannie and Freddie by their regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency. The government promised they would end once the companies had been restored "to a safe and sound condition." Paulson called the situation a "temporary time-out."
That was 14 years ago. Now, halfway into their fourth presidential administration, five Treasury secretaries and four FHFA directors have come and gone. For a decade, Fannie and Freddie have been highly profitable. "Reforms" critics insisted were necessary have long-since been enacted. And the government's own
Clearly it is time to ask why these companies — whose tenure as wards of the state has now outlasted even the conservatorship of pop star Britney Spears — should not be released. Shareholders rightfully want to know: "When do we get our companies back?"
The conventional wisdom that the taxpayer is somehow at risk is a myth. True, Fannie and Freddie insure approximately $6.5 trillion of primarily single-family home mortgages, but
The purpose of a conservatorship is to preserve and conserve the assets of an enterprise, restore it to financial health, and then return it to its owners. Under capitalism and our free enterprise system, the government is not supposed to be in the business of owning private, profit-making companies. Respect for private property rights is a bedrock principle of our democracy and is enshrined in our Constitution.
Republicans on the Senate Banking Committee have called for Fannie and Freddie to be released. So why is the Biden administration procrastinating? True, some critics fear shareholders might make a killing. If that's the issue, does it count that for 14 years, shareholders have been stuck with "dead money" — while the stock market has risen fivefold? And why be concerned? Warrants allow the government to purchase 79.9% of Fannie and Freddie common shares for just $70,000 (you read that right, no zeroes omitted). That means that for every dollar the shareholders make, the taxpayer makes four.
Once Treasury formally admits that the $191 billion it advanced Fannie and Freddie during the financial crisis has been fully repaid with a
Mr. Layton and the Republicans in Congress aren't the only ones calling on the administration to free Fannie and Freddie. Among others is the former head of the FDIC,
So, Mr. President, what are we waiting for?