1115.org

Fannie, Freddie Adequately Capitalized: Lockhart - CNBC (7/8/08):

Mortgage financiers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are adequately capitalized and continue to be active in the mortgage market, said James Lockhart, director of the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise, which regulates the two enterprises.

“Both of these companies are adequately capitalized, which is our highest criteria,” Lockhart said in an interview with CNBC.

Paulson: Fannie and Freddie are adequately capitalized - Marketwatch (7/10/08):

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson moved swiftly Thursday to defend Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from critics who have called them insolvent. “Their regulator has made clear that they are adequately capitalized.”

U.S. Weighs Takeover of Two Mortgage Giants - NYT (7/11/08):

Alarmed by the growing financial stress at the nation’s two largest mortgage finance companies, senior Bush administration officials are considering a plan to have the government take over one or both of the companies and place them in a conservatorship if their problems worsen, people briefed about the plan said on Thursday.
[…]
The officials involved in the discussions stressed that no action by the administration was imminent, and that Fannie and Freddie are not considered to be in a crisis situation.

Paulson Seeks Authority to Shore Up Fannie, Freddie - Bloomberg (7/13/08):

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson swung the weight of the federal government behind Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the beleaguered companies that buy or finance almost half of the $12 trillion of U.S. mortgages.

Paulson, speaking on the steps of the Treasury facing the White House, asked Congress for authority to buy unlimited stakes in and lend to the companies, aiming to stem a collapse in confidence. The Federal Reserve separately authorized the firms to borrow directly from the central bank.

It’s all good, because despite the lying officials and incompetent regulators quoted above, Hank Paulson told me three months ago that the worst is behind us.

And speaking of those “officials involved in the discussions,” will NYT reporters Stephen Labaton and Steven R. Weisman expose them after being burned by their lies? Will Lockhart be fired for spectacular incompetence? Will anyone hire the oh-so-wise and credible Hank Paulson in six months? Stay tuned.