Fannie and Freddie continued buying low-down-payment mortgages aggressively into 2007—23% of their home-purchase loans by number that year were low-down-payment—because, politically cornered after the 2003 accounting scandal and growing opposition (including from every Treasury Department across administrations and Alan Greenspan), they bought a political 'insurance policy' by pleasing affordable-housing advocates like Barney Frank.

causalpending

Speaker

Charles Calomiris

Evidence Quote

I hate to say it but that's how simple it is in my view but I don't want to overdo that

Source

Charles Calomiris on the Financial Crisis 10/26/2009EconTalk
Created: 6/15/2026, 9:20:15 AM

My Notes

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