Capital Commerce

Uncle Sam Nears a Massive Banking, Housing Bailout

By James Pethokoukis

Posted: March 14, 2008

Of course, the irony of today's Federal Reserve bailout of investment bank Bear Stearns is that the firm has a reputation as being among the most free-market loving on Wall Street—and that's saying something about a company located smack in the middle in America's financial capital. But just as there are no atheists in foxholes, there are no libertarians during financial crises, at least not if it's their dough at stake. And while there are plenty of economists out there who are advocating a hands-off approach to the credit crisis and housing implosion—echoing Andrew Mellon's infamous advocacy of "liquidate...liquidate...liquidate"—they will be disappointed. Uncle Sam will probably continue to intervene during this financial turmoil.

And not just the Fed. More and more, it looks as though Congress, followed by a reluctant White House, will move ever more boldly to stop the hemorrhaging in housing and unfreeze the credit markets. Richard Bove, banking analyst at Punk Ziegel, says in a note this morning that it's "more certain than ever" that there will be a housing bailout to stop the increasing rate of foreclosures and the continuing drop in home prices. And political analyst Alec Phillips of Goldman Sachs says that he sees "a high likelihood that some type of housing measure is enacted this year." Most of the legislative energy seems to be swirling around a plan put forward by Democratic Rep. Barney Frank. The plan, as outlined by Bove:

• FHA provides up to $300 billion in new guarantees to help refinance at-risk borrowers into viable mortgages.

• The terms of the first mortgage are set at a level that the borrower can afford.

• A second mortgage is put in place, which pays off on sale of the house and allows the government to recover the losses absorbed by creating the first mortgage at below market rates.

• The existing lender agrees to accept a reduced payment, which could be substantial since the new loan is based on the house's current appraised value.

• Gets the existing lender free of all obligations and exposure to the borrower.

• Refinance between 1 and 2 million homes.

• Provide funds to refurbish empty homes and put them back on the market.

Phillips thinks that while President Bush might prefer a more free-market approach, the White House is "not likely to come out strongly against the proposal initially. Given our expectation for Democratic gains in the upcoming election, such proposals are likely to become law by mid-2009 in the event that they fail to gain support this year. For this reason, Republicans may seek a compromise in 2008."

Indeed, President Bush has almost gone out of his way not to rule out a bailout. Nor did he do so in a speech to the Economic Club of New York this morning. And in an interview on CNBC today with Lawrence Kudlow, the president basically said that in extraordinary situations, extraordinary action is required.

Now, don't expect a financial miracle or a relaunch of the housing boom here. Instead, a bailout would give clarity to investors by shifting the price and foreclosure risk of the tumbling housing market to the government and taxpayers. Bove, who has been advocating a plan like Frank's, thinks passage would be great news for homeowners and the credit markets:

This program will work. It makes sense. It penalizes the bad lenders. It allows the householder to stay in the home and forces him/her to pay the government at the time of sale for its initial losses. It allows the holders of structured financial securities to be paid off and reestablishes the credibility of these securities. It cleans away the financial garbage that is now depressing the markets. It provides a solution to the empty housing dilemma. Plus, and this is important, it creates a format that can be used by the private sector to rid itself of the troubled loans without government getting involved. Big banks can do this without the government's aid. This idea is as brilliant as the Fed's securities swap idea. Clearly I am biased in reviewing this proposal because it is one that I have been advocating for months in almost the exact same format. If this gets through Congress the financial crisis is definitely over.

And there are other ideas floating around as well. Nobel laureate and financier Myron Scholes wants the government to inject capital into the banking system by investing in debt and stock. International Monetary Fund official John Lipsky, a Wall Street veteran, also thinks the government may need to put taxpayer money directly into banks. And Vincent Reinhart, the Fed's former chief monetary economist, told Bloomberg that the Fed is inching closer to buying up those beaten-down mortgage-backed securities.

Are any of these suggestions likely to happen? Today's move by the Fed, using a little-used Depression-era provision of the Federal Reserve Act, makes previously unlikely actions seem far more possible.

managers

Who is going to be given monies to distribute to whom for rehab unsold houses

allen parker of GA @ Jan 25, 2009 19:07:20 PM

Fed Mortgage Bailout (Cop-out)

Just great. The concept of entitlement has become so entrenched in the national psyche that we're now faced with bailing out homeowners who made poor decisions and rewarding lenders who made stratospheric profits. It's insane. Where does it end?

I took none of the risks, got none of the rewards and now I and every other hard-working, and in many cases, struggling taxpayer, am expected to pay for it all? It's b.s. and a system that isn't sustainable. It is truly crazy.

Let the chips fall where they may. We need to get back to higher savings rates, spending within our means and taking the long view toward sustainable growth. No country in history has ever 'spent' its way into prosperity. And we won't either.

John in Florida of FL @ Mar 18, 2008 14:11:10 PM

The federal Reserve Should Be Abolished

In Article I, Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution, the people of the United States granted Congress the power "to coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures.” The people never gave congress the constitutional power to delegate this money-creating and regulating responsibility to any private group. Yet this is exactly what the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 did. The bill was publicly promoted as a plan to reform the nation's monetary system and stabilize the currency by taking control of it out of the hands of big bankers. In reality, of course, the Federal Reserve Act was written by the big bankers for the purpose of solidifying their control over our currency.

Many Americans today wrongfully believe that the Federal Reserve is somehow part of the federal government, possibly even the Treasury Department. Many do not know that the Federal Reserve is actually a cartel of private banks that was given the power to be the sole issuer of U.S. money, with full control over its quantity and thus its value. Since this group of private bankers (the Fed) provides credit to the U.S. government when we spend money we don’t have, the Fed also is able to profit handsomely from the ever-increasing national debt. Because the Fed makes more money when the country goes deeper into debt, there is no incentive for the Fed to support any reductions in federal deficit spending. The more credit we need, the more money this cartel of private banks will make.

The actions the Fed takes can drastically affect the economy simply by making decisions about the money supply and interest rates. The president, congress, big business, investors, home buyers and anyone else with an interest in our economy waits with baited breath every time the Federal Reserve Board meets. If they decide to raise interest rates, politicians and industries could fall, homes might not be purchased and jobs could be lost. If the Fed decides to lower the interest rates, politicians, industries, investors and consumers may prosper. There is too much power vested in a handful of people whose names would not be recognized by most Americans.

Why do we allow such a small group of people on the Federal Reserve Board to wield so much power over our country’s economic well-being? As average Americans strive to earn a living, cope with rising costs of food, fuel and hopefully save or invest for the future, Congress and the Federal Reserve Bank are working insidiously against them. On a daily basis, every dollar they have is being devalued.

Even though most Americans seem unaware of the current plight of the US dollar, especially in relation to the Euro, there is definitely a dollar crisis in the world economy because of the immense size of the international debt of America. America has now become the largest debtor in history, owing somewhere between $70 and $100 Trillion. The reckless deficit spending by our government, coupled with Federal Reserve currency devaluation, has become one of the greatest threats facing America today. Because Congress is routinely spending more than it can tax or borrow and the Fed is routinely printing “Fiat Money” (Dollars backed by nothing) out of thin air to make up the difference, this classic “one-two punch” threatens to further destroy the value of our dollars.

The actions of both major political parties would seem to indicate that they want the Fed to print more “Fiat Money” to support their extravagant and unchecked spending habits. Most politicians want the printing presses to run faster and faster, create more credit, issue rebate checks, etc., so that the economy will somehow be magically healed by this dangerous financial potion, or so they believe. The President and members of Congress may love a system that generates more and more money for their special interest projects and earmarks, but the rest of us have good reason to be concerned about our monetary system and the future value of our American dollars.

Issuing “Fiat Money” has allowed our government to live well beyond its means, but that practice cannot continue much longer as it is slowly destroying the value of our dollars. History shows us that when the destruction of monetary value becomes rampant, as the actions of our congress and the Fed would indicate, nearly everyone suffers and both the economic and political structure becomes unstable. The Federal Reserve System has been the tool used by the major bankers to allow them to gain control over the smaller regional and local banks. The Fed has also acted as the financing agency for Congress' unprecedented deficit spending on an ever growing, more intrusive federal bureaucracy and the expansion of the welfare state. Some people believe that the private bankers in the Federal Reserve wield so much power that they can intentionally manipulate the economy in order to influence the results of our presidential elections.

Our government and the American people do not need the help of any private banking cartel to manage our monetary system. We need to repeal the Federal Reserve Act and return control of our currency to Congress where it belongs, as was the intent of our Founders. We also need to have a serious national discussion about how real currency reform can be achieved. As long as the private bankers in the Federal Reserve have control over our nation's money, Congress' control of the purse-strings will not have the benefits the country’s Founders intended.

I support legislation introduced by Congressman Ron Paul, of Texas, entitled “Federal Reserve Board Abolition Act (H.R. 2755) that will restore financial stability to America's economy by abolishing the Federal Reserve.

REF: H.R. 2755: Federal Reserve Board Abolition Act

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c110:H.R.2755:

By:

JOHN W. WALLACE

Candidate for Congress

New York’s 20th Congressional District

www.FreedomCandidate.com

John Wallace of NY @ Mar 16, 2008 20:58:24 PM

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Capital Commerce

Capital Commerce

U.S. News business reporter Matthew Bandyk examines the issues, people, and debates that shape the nexus of political and economic life in the nation's capital.

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