Nov. 7, 2011, Fairfax, VA—Americans for Limited Government President Bill Wilson today issued a statement blasting Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for handing out $12.8 million in bonuses after costing the U.S. Treasury $170 billion:
“Fannie and Freddie have lost over $170 billion of taxpayer money since being nationalized in 2008, are still bleeding billions on a quarterly basis, and yet the companies have handed out $12.8 million in bonuses. There shouldn’t be any bonuses for these so-called companies. They ought to be liquidated.
“Government policies wrecked the GSEs by blowing up the housing bubble in the first place by weakening lending standards and pushing loans on folks who could not afford to pay back, overleveraging, and using a quota system for what turned out to be shoddy loans. Now government policies in the aftermath of the financial crisis have failed to unwind the failed enterprises, are attempting to loosen lending once again, and are pushing interest rates down even further, preventing the companies from ever returning to profitability.
“Congress should at long last pass legislation that will bring an end to government’s failed, catastrophic mismanagement of the U.S. housing finance sector, not reward that mismanagement with millions of dollars of taxpayer-funded bonuses.”
Interview Availability: Please contact Rebekah Rast at (703) 383-0880 or at rrast@getliberty.org to arrange an interview with ALG President Bill Wilson.
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