READING BETWEEN FREDDY'S FANNIE

Press Conference by the President
James S. Brady Press Briefing Room

July 15, 2008

[This is an abbreviated version]

THE PRESIDENT:

To help address challenges in the housing and financial markets, we announced temporary steps to help stabilize them and increase confidence in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

[Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac sound like singers]

These two enterprises play a central role in our housing finance system, so Treasury Paulson

[Is his first name really Treasury? I didn’t know that]

has worked with the Federal Reserve Chairman Bernanke so that the companies and the government regulators -- put the companies and the government regulators on a plan to strengthen these enterprises. We must ensure they can continue providing access

[Excess?]

to mortgage credit during this time of financial stress.

To help address the pressure on gasoline prices

[What pressure? The pressure is on the paying customers, not on the gasoline prices]

my administration took action this week to clear the way for offshore exploration on the Outer Continental Shelf.

[Instead of exploration on the Moon or in Outer Space]

It's what's called OCS. Congress has restricted access to key parts of the OCS since the early 1980s; I've called on Congress to remove the ban. There was also an executive prohibition on exploration, offshore exploration. So yesterday, I issued a memorandum to lift this executive prohibition. With this action, the executive branch's restrictions have been removed, and this means that the only thing standing between the American people and these vast oil resources is action from the U.S. Congress.

[Or another war]

Bringing OCS resources online is going to take time

[But the Internets are fast],

which means that the need for congressional action is urgent. The sooner Congress lifts the ban, the sooner we can get these resources from the ocean floor to refineries, to the gas pump.

[If they’re on the ocean floor, why do any holes have to be drilled?]

Congress needs also to pass bills to fund our government in a fiscally responsible way.

[Not like me when I funded the unnecessary invasion and occupation of Iraq]

There are just 26 legislative days left before the end of the fiscal year. This means that to get their fundamental job done, Congress would have to pass a spending bill nearly every other day. This is not a record to be proud of, and I think the American people deserve better.

[They deserve for us to spend their money as fast as we can before the Democrats take over and start taxing my rich friends]

Yet despite the challenges we face, our economy has demonstrated remarkable resilience

[And a recalcitrant recession].

While the unemployment rate has risen, it remains at 5.5 percent, which is still low by historical standards

[But high if it’s you].

We saw the signs of a slowdown early and enacted a bipartisan economic stimulus package. We've now delivered more than $91 billion in tax relief to more than 112 million American households this year. It's going to take some time before we feel the full benefit of the stimulus package, but the early signs are encouraging

[Higher CO2 levels].

The bottom line is this: We're going through a tough time, but our economy has continued growing

[And our dollar has continued shrinking],

consumers are spending

[and going broke],

businesses are investing

[and laying off workers],

exports continue increasing

[I’d like to know just where they’re going],

and American productivity remains strong

[but not as strong as American consumption].

Q:

Mr. President, are America's banks in trouble? And does the rescue of Freddie Mae and Fannie Mac [sic] make more bailouts inevitable by sending the message that there are some institutions that are too big to fail and that it's okay to take risks?

THE PRESIDENT:

First, let me talk about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

[I think I see them in the audience]

A lot of people in the country probably don't understand how important they are to the mortgage markets.

[If it wasn’t for people there wouldn’t be any markets]

And it's really important for people to have confidence in the mortgage markets and that there be stability in the mortgage markets. And that's why Secretary Paulson announced the plan this weekend, which says that he needs authorities

[Law Enforcement authorities?]

from the Congress to come up with a line of credit for these institutions, if needed, and that he ought to have the authority to invest capital---

[YOUR TAXES!]

if needed.

And so the purpose was to send a clear signal that, one, we understand how important these institutions are to the mortgage markets, and two, to kind of calm nerves.

[So that you don’t have to spend so much money on tranquilizers]

Now, if you're a commercial bank in America and your deposit -- and you have a deposit in a commercial bank in America, your deposit is insured by the federal government up to $100,000.

[But most of you probably don’t even have any savings, because your money’s going into your gas tanks!]

And so, therefore, when you hear nervousness about your bank, you know, people start talking about how nervous they are about your bank's condition

[Not your heart or mental condition] --

the depositor must understand that the federal government through the FDIC

[Cheney seems to be everywhere and nowhere]

stands behind the deposit up to $100,000.

[But my low tax-paying, super-rich friends wouldn’t think of keeping their money deposited in U.S. banks, so they don’t have to worry about DIC standing behind them…unless he’s holding a shotgun]

My hope is, is that people take a deep breath and realize that their deposits are protected by our government.

[Just don’t hold your breath too long]

Q:

And banking -- do you think the system is in trouble?

THE PRESIDENT:

I think the system basically is sound, I truly do. And I understand there's a lot of nervousness.

[It’s making me nervous when I keep repeating that you’re nervous]

Q:

Gas prices are now approaching $5 a gallon in some parts of the country. Offshore oil exploration is obviously a long-term approach. What is the short-term advice for Americans? What can you do now to help them?

THE PRESIDENT:

There is no immediate fix.

[Unless you’re an addict. Well, I guess Americans are addicts…to oil!]

This took us a while to get in this problem; there is no short-term solution. I think it was in the Rose Garden where I issued this brilliant statement: If I had a magic wand---but the President doesn't have a magic wand.

[He has a pitchfork]

You just can't say, low gas.

[Unless that’s what your fuel gauge says]

It took us a while to get here and we need to have a good strategy to get out of it.

[On horses, camels, and donkeys]

Q:

I wonder whether you felt betrayed by Scott McClellan's assessment of the war in Iraq? And moving forward, since there have been positive signs on the ground in Iraq, Senator Obama is about to take a trip there -- what would be your advice to him as he tries to assess the situation on the ground?

THE PRESIDENT: I have had no comment on -- no comment now on Scott's book.

[I don’t want to lie any more than I have to]

The Iraqis have invited us to be there.

[They did? I thought my Iraq war was a pre-emptive war based upon a factory of fabrications]

But they share a goal with us

[They love soccer],

which is to get our combat troops out, as conditions permit. Matter of fact, that's what we're doing.

[What! Then why are so many troops returning to Iraq on multiple missions?]

Return on success has been the strategy of this administration,

[Just don’t expect any return on your taxes that dole out $2,500,000,000 per week for my occupation of Iraq]

and our troops are coming home, but based upon success

[And severe trauma head injuries].

And so I would ask whoever goes there, whatever elected official goes there, to listen carefully to

[The bombs, bullets, and mortars]

what is taking place and understand that the best way to go forward is to listen to the parties [I like parties] who are actually on the ground.

[And not in the ground]

And that's hard to do.

[But not in the soft sands of Iraq]

I understand for some in Washington there's a lot of pressure; you got these groups out there -- MoveOn.org, you know, banging away on these candidates.

[I just hope that they’re using birth control when they’re doing their banging]

Q:

Following up on the question about oil, in the past, when oil prices have gone up a lot, they've wound up going down a lot afterward. But I wonder if you're able to say that oil prices in the future are going to come down a lot.

THE PRESIDENT:

I can't predict, John.

[I’m the Decider---not that Nostradamus guy]

Now, I'm encouraged by, you know, the Caspian Basin exploration.

[Isn’t this the reason that we invaded Afghanistan?]

But the question then becomes, where are we going to get electricity?

[I get mine when I put plugs in those outlets]

Q:

Thank you, Mr. President. I have a two-part question on the war, in light of increasing violence in Afghanistan. Do you believe current U.S. troop levels in Iraq are hindering efforts to put more U.S. troops into Afghanistan?

And secondly, this morning in his prepared remarks, Senator Obama will say this: "By any measure, our single-minded, open-ended focus on Iraq is not a sound strategy for keeping America safe. In fact, as should have been apparent to President Bush and Senator McCain, the central front in the war on terror is not Iraq and it never was."

THE PRESIDENT:

Well, as you know, I'm loathe [and loathed] to respond to a particular presidential candidate, and so I will try not to. Is this a war? Or is this like law enforcement? Is it a -- does this require full use of U.S. assets in order to protect the American people? As you know, I made the decision that it does require those assets.

[At the tune of 10 billion dollars a month!]

Okay, I've enjoyed it. Thank you very much for your time. Appreciate it.