Posted on 09/08/2008 2:22:19 PM PDT by Rennes Templar
Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin stumbled this weekend when she commented on the federal takeover of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The Huffington Post "helpfully" pointed out her mistake to anyone who missed it the first time around.
Speaking before voters in Colorado Springs, the Republican vice presidential nominee claimed that lending giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac had "gotten too big and too expensive to the taxpayers." The companies, as McClatchy reported, "aren't taxpayer funded but operate as private companies.
The takeover may result in a taxpayer bailout during reorganization."
Economists and analysts pounced on the misstatement, saying it demonstrated a lack of understanding about one of the key economic issues likely to face the next administration.
"You would like to think that someone who is going to be vice president and conceivable president would know what Fannie and Freddie do," said Dean Baker, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research. "These are huge institutions and they are absolutely central to our country's mortgage debt. To not have a clue what they do doesn't speak well for her, I'd say."
- snip-
Palin just got a bit ahead of the facts. Now that the federal government has taken over the companies, taxpayers will likely be on the hook now for maybe hundreds of billions of dollars. Perhanps she was just looking ahead.
(Excerpt) Read more at swamppolitics.com ...
They assume she means the taxpayers are funding Fannie. Did she mean overreaching homeowners who pay taxes otherwise?
Us taxpayers are getting the bill for this “bailout”.
POINT OUT that the DEMS made credit EASY - “no money down” through reckless legislation.
Perhaps voters are sick of nitpicking pinheads like you just waiting to jump on a verb tense while discarding the underlying truth of what is being said, while also completely ignoring the role former Fannie Mae executives have played in the Obama campaign.
Enjoy your ride to the ocean floor on the SS Titanic Ego. I know I'll enjoy watching it.
It’s possible... JUST POSSIBLE... that she isn’t practically perfect in every way...
She’s still my hope for the future. Eat that, Huffpo!
ah yes, the Chicago Tribune, that bastion of impartiality...
As it turns out, it appears that federal dollars will be used to bail these corporations out. Not good.
They are tax payer funded now.
Palin's point was obviously that 1. Fannie and Freddie have always been a huge liability for taxpayers, because 2. everyone knew that the government would bail them out if they failed, and 3. a McCain-Palin administration would use the government's new authority over Fannie and Freddie to shrink these beasts down to size and protect taxpayers in the future.
Pinicking pric*heads you mean.
Considering the takeover ... the taxpayers on now on the hook for Fannie & Freddie.
A liberal Chicago paper citing the Huffington Post who “helpfully” pointed out her take to anyone who missed it the first time around.
More sick media.
Too expensive for the taxpayers? How can anyone disagree with that? If it wasn’t obvious on Friday that they are too expensive for the taxpayers, it should be today.
Oh, no! Stop the presses! Gov. Palin made a faux paux.
This changes everything. No one will vote for them now. Oh, my, what ever are we gonna’ do?
I thought these were quasi-government/private companies. Not totally private.
In the end, the taxpayers are funding Fannie. That’s exactly what a federal guarantee means...unfortunately.
Specifically through amendments to the Community Redevelopment Act pushed through by the Clinton administration in the mid 90's.
In other news...Sarah Palin chipped a nail today! Do you really want a VP with chipped nails? If she can’t keep her nails in order, how can she effectively be a heart beat away from the most powerful position in the world?! HUH?! HUH?! HUH?! WELL?!!
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