ProPublica’s Paul Kiel blogs that the Treasury Dept. quietly announced Friday afternoon that it was providing another $15 billion in its bailout of now wholly government-owned mortgage financier Fannie Mae. Fannie Mae has received a total of $60 billion in taxpayer bailout money, while its sister company, Freddie Mac, has received $50 billion. That’s $110 billion in bailout money that doesn’t come from the Troubled Asset Relief Program, but, as Kiel explains, a separate housing bailout.

Barack Obama’s home ownership assistance program has exacerbated Fannie Mae’s troubles. Fannie Mae is required by the federal government to provide the “incentive fees” needed to entice banks to modify mortgages so the homeowner does not enter foreclosure. The unfortunate irony is that many of the banks who receive these incentive fees, like Wells Fargo or J.P. Morgan, have already received billions in TARP bailout money. The Obama and George W. Bush administration never stipulated that these bailed out banks participate in federal programs to help consumers.

Maybe the direct federal rescue of these banks was needed to prevent an even more dire financial meltdown.  However, the excessively costly, slow-moving homeowner assistance program (the rate of foreclosure outpaces the rate of homeowners the program is assists) shows the consequences of the George W. Bush and Obama administrations not demanding concessions from bailed out banks.

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