President Obama, a Mortgage Schizophrenic?

It’s not easy being president. Just ask George W. Bush or Jimmy Carter. As for the current inhabitant of the White House, he was a bit late to the game when it came to tackling the housing and mortgage crisis. He wants to fix the housing/mortgage mess and he controls (sort of) three entities that can aid in that recovery: Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and HUD/FHA. HUD is part of his cabinet but the GSEs are like a rebellious teenager headed by gang leader and nonconformist Ed DeMarco. Of course, DeMarco also deserves credit for not being pushed around by the White House on principal reductions. (Hey Daddio, it’s all about the ‘rule of law,’ man’ and preserving assets for the taxpayer – and he’s right.) When it comes to housing/mortgages Obama has to worry about spending too much money and further damaging the housing market. And wait, didn’t the White House/Treasury put out some white paper a year ago calling for the end to Fannie and Freddie? I believe so. If all this doesn’t sound like schizophrenia or flip-flopping or general confusion or irony, well so be it. (Is Mitt Romney in the house? He’s a private equity guy and they’re smart. Right?) One thing is certain: this White House does not want housing/mortgages to be an issue in the November election. But how long can it keep the issue on the sidelines? Maybe he should hire Newt Gingrich as an advisor. He supposedly knows a lot about mortgages and risk.