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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Fannie Mae, the largest provider of residential mortgage funds, on Friday reported a loss of $16.3 billion for the fourth quarter of last year and said it requested $15.3 billion from the Treasury to keep its net worth in positive territory. The government-controlled company said it would need additional taxpayer funds in the future to continue operations. Fannie Mae said the quarterly loss came as rising defaults kept credit-related expenses elevated at $11.9 billion, though expenses were almost half the third quarter level of $22.0 billion. Fannie Mae's quarterly loss was $15.2 billion before a $1.2 billion...

Gee, what took you so long? McLean, VA – Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE) announced today that on or about September 1, 2010, the company will cease purchasing and securitizing interest only mortgages, including Freddie Mac Initial InterestSM fixed-rate and adjustable-rate mortgages. Additional information will be provided to Freddie Mac Seller/Servicers in an upcoming Single-Family Seller/Servicer Guide bulletin.Interest only mortgages, including Freddie Mac Initial Interest mortgages, provide for interest-only payments for a specified period of time beginning with the first monthly payment after the note date, and principal and interest payments on a fully amortizing basis for the remainder of the...

Here is video of Meet the Press moderator David Gregory today confronting Obama Adviser Valerie Jarrett about her claim that Obama has "turned the economy around." After she made the claim, Gregory interrupted Jarrett and said: "I'm sorry - you can't say you've turned the economy around when there are 4 million jobs that have been lost on the President's watch, when the Debt is higher, and the Stimulus did not produce the jobs the administration said it would."Jarrett responded with "actually I disagree with everything you just said." Jarrett had a shocked look on her face as Gregory made...

“The best way to destroy the capitalist system is to debauch the currency.” Vladimir Lenin, leader of the 1917 Russian Revolution Last week, while Congress and the nation were preoccupied with the holidays, the Treasury made a Christmas eve announcement that it would be providing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac unlimited financial support for the next three years. The Treasury's press release notes: “At the time the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) placed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into conservatorship in September 2008, Treasury established Preferred Stock Purchase Agreements (PSPAs) to ensure that each firm maintained a positive net worth....

Here is video of MSNBC's David Gregory and Andrea Mitchell talking about President Obama's appearance on the Michael Smerconish Radio Show which broadcast live today from the White House. Gregory said Obama is trying to once again become the "face" of the Health Care Debate instead of the Town Hall Meetings that have seized the spotlight in recent weeks. Gregory also said Obama has not answered the question of how they can pay for their massive health plan without raising taxes. . . . . . (Watch Video)

Here is video of NBC Moderator of Meet the Press David Gregory saying tonight that President Obama "has lost control of the Health Care Debate." Gregory was providing analysis after President Obama's Town Hall Meeting today in Grand Junction, Colorado. Gregory said that the very public debate being played out across the nation in Town Hall Meetings is not where Obama wanted the debate to be. But that is exactly where it should be - with lawmakers hearing from the American people. Obama and the Democrats never intended for this to happen. That's why they planned to ram Health Care...

Mix up on the Today Show catches David Gregory furiously brushing his hair. See Plunderbund.com for more info!

[video of interview, and Krusty the Clown] The Obama administration is beginning to look like one of those clown cars. The door flies open and dozens of clowns pour out. Christin Romer, the latest clown and chairwoman of the President’s Council of Economic Advisors, attempted to snow host David Gregory on Sunday’s Meet The Press. Gregory wasn’t buying. GREGORY: So back then during the campaign when Senator McCain talked about the strong fundamentals of the economy, it was then-candidate Obama and his team that roundly criticized McCain, saying he was out of touch, he didn’t get it, he didn’t understand...

The graphic below David Gregory’s speaks of “despair over rescue efforts.” There’s evidence this morning that the hopelessness has reached the MSM–and that it is largely directed at the president himself. Earlier, I noted how Jim Cramer, appearing on Today, accused President Obama of promoting a “radical agenda” that is “the greatest wealth destruction I’ve seen by a president.” Over on Good Morning America, venerable Wall Street hand Art Cashin, chatting with Chris Cuomo, similarly pointed a finger in the White House’s direction. CHRIS CUOMO: You look at this situation, and you point a finger at the government. Their inability...

On today’s Meet the Press, moderator David Gregory seemed surprisingly sympathetic to Rick Santelli’s epic, on-air denunciation of Pres. Obama’s plan that would force responsible homeowners to bail out the others. In contrast, Al Hunt played the part of the predictable liberal to perfection, dismissing Santelli’s soliloquy as “sophomoric.” Gregory aired a clip of White House press secretary Robert Gibbs’ contemptuous comments about Santelli, including the bit in which Gibbs holds up a copy of the president’s plan and sneeringly suggests Santelli print it off and read it. Gregory indicated he had indeed read the plan–then explained why Santelli and...

MSNBC has banished the last bastion of objectivity from its line-up of evening hosts. The network has announced that David Shuster [file photo] will be replacing David Gregory as host of '1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.' [H/t Mike Allen's Political Playbook.] Gregory, his pending Meet The Press appointment no doubt in mind, had been on his best behavior while hosting 1600. Gregory was an oasis of objectivity in the liberal MSNBC desert. Shuster will be under no such restraints. The evening Eastern time line-up will henceforth stand: * 5 PM: Hardball with Chris Matthews * 6 PM: 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue with David...

Of all the genres of interviews, those conducted by the media with family and friends of victims of tragedy are among the most difficult and often least successful. A remarkable exception to that rule comes in the form of the interview David Gregory conducted on this morning's Today show with Rabbi Shalom Paltiel, who was a friend of the Chabad couple murdered in Mombai and is a fellow member of the Chabad movement. Gregory demonstrates knowledge and sensitivity, and Rabbi Paltiel exhibits a faith and optimism in the face of tragedy that people of all faiths should find inspiring. I...

Whoever had the brilliant idea to make Capricia Marshall a guest on MSNBC's "1600 Pennsylvania Avenue" last night was probably hiding from host David Gregory when the show ended. Marshall turned out to be the least forthcoming guest I have ever seen on a political talk show. The aide to Hillary Clinton put up smiling stonewall that would make G. Gordon Liddy—who chose a stiff prison sentence over Watergate stool-pigeonhood—proud. Marshall is the director of Hillary Clinton's political action committee, Hillpac, and former social secretary in the Clinton White House. Gregory had her on in the clear expectation that she...

Jeff Cohen, founder of FAIR—a self-described progressive media watch group—now a professor of independent media at Ithaca College, invited me to address his class of student bloggers this afternoon. Asked to name some of the fairer MSM journalists, I included David Gregory on my short list. That could understandably come as a surprise to those who remember Gregory from his days as NBC's chief White House correspondent, when he earned the ire of the Bush administration for his often-aggressive style. But I've found that Gregory plays it pretty much down the middle in his new role as host of Race...

The NBC/MSNBC family of networks has been getting maximum mileage out of Chris Matthews's interview of Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) last week. Matthews himself has been recycling clips ever since. This morning, David Gregory narrated a Today show segment about the interview and its aftermath. The only journalist whose views Gregory aired were those of Nick Coleman, columnist at the Minneapolis Star Tribune. NICK COLEMAN: I think Michele Bachmann unfortunately is one of those politicians who doesn't understand the boundaries of common sense and sometimes common decency. View video here.

The troubled mortgage finance giant announces restructuring of organization with more direct reports to CEO.WASHINGTON (AP) -- Mortgage finance giant Fannie Mae, taken over by the government earlier this month, announced Friday the resignations of four senior executives and said it was restructuring its organization. The company, the biggest buyer and guarantor of home loans in the country, and its sibling Freddie Mac (FRE, Fortune 500) were taken over on Sept. 7 in a rescue plan that eventually could require the Treasury Department to put up as much as $100 billion for each of them over time if needed to...

<p>MSNBC drops Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews from anchor chair... David Gregory will anchor news coverage of the coming debates and election night.... Developing...</p>

Has NBC White House Correspondent David Gregory turned over a new leaf? Gregory, who has earned a lot of critics for having an anti-Bush/liberal bias, made it seem that way during a discussion about ethics in politics and journalism Thursday. He claimed to struggle with Jewish teachings about saying bad things about others - at least when it comes to Democrats. Gregory, who is Jewish, said he relies on the Jewish law on speech to make editorial decisions for his MSNBC daily afternoon show "Race for the White House."

I haven't seen Chris Matthews this excited since a Barack Obama speech sent that special sensation skyward. The Hardball host is in an absolute frenzy over Scott McClellan's allegations. So much so that guests on this evening's show are having a hard time expressing themselves as Matthews expounds at length. Ari Fleischer finally called Chris on it. And while David Gregory didn't express his ire in words, he made a facial expression that left little doubt as to his annoyance at being cut off in mid-sentence. The screencap shows Gregory's grimace. But be sure to view the video here to...

Tucker Carlson Out at MSNBC NEW YORK (AP) — The bow tie is out at MNSBC. David Gregory is replacing Tucker Carlson as host of a one-hour show each evening. The news network is making a handful of changes to respond to heavy political interest. Gregory's new show is called "Race for the White House" and will be on each weekday at 6 p.m. starting next Monday. Carlson has been at MSNBC for nearly three years. MSNBC also says that Andrea Mitchell will anchor an hour each afternoon. Keith Olbermann's popular "Countdown" program will rerun every night at 10.