From The Road
July 10, 2008 12:11 PM

McCain: "We Will Not Allow" Fannie and Freddie to Fail

By
John Bentley
Topics
John McCain
(CBS)
From CBS News' John Bentley:

(LIVONIA, MICH.) Saying "they will not fail, we will not allow them to fail," John McCain said the U.S. government should do whatever it can to insure the giant mortgage companies do not become insolvent.

"Those institutions, Fannie and Freddie, have been responsible for millions of Americans to be able to own their own homes," he said. "They are vital to American's ability to own their own homes. And we will do what's necessary to make sure that they continue that function."

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are publically traded companies chartered by Congress that are responsible for making sure banks have enough money to make home loans. The home loan crisis over the past few months have battered their stock prices to the point where they may require a government bailout.

Even though McCain is in favor of government help for the companies, he called for increased openness to prevent another meltdown. "There has to be much greater transparency in the way that they do business in order to insure that this kind of difficulties that they're in is not repeated."

Add a Comment
by shingles1 July 10, 2008 4:55 PM EDT
Don''t government bailouts cost money? Where does McCain expect to find the money for this bailout?
Probably from the imaginary savings created by his ''Victory in Iraq'' plan.
Reply to this comment
by rgrxx175 July 10, 2008 4:15 PM EDT
McCain Dismissed Concerns on Mortgage Crisis and Economy. While campaigning in Florida, McCain dismissed concerns about the economy. %u201CEven if the economy is the, quote, No. 1 issue, the real issue will remain America%u2019s security,%u201D McCain said. %u201CAnd if they choose to say, %u2018Look, I do not need this guy because he%u2019s not as good on home loan mortgages or whatever it is, I understand about that, I will accept that verdict. I am running because of the transcendental challenge of the 21st century, which is radical Islamic extremism.%u201D
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