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Pastimes : Clown-Free Zone... sorry, no clowns allowed -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Box-By-The-Riviera™ who wrote (250611)	7/16/2003 9:19:15 PM
From: patron_anejo_por_favor	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 436258

new.wavlist.com online.wsj.com Rep. Baker Cancels Freddie Mac Hearing By JOHN D. MCKINNON Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL WASHINGTON -- A smoldering political fight over Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae flared up when their leading congressional critic said he was canceling a hearing because the two companies refused to testify. The House subcommittee hearing set for Thursday had been aimed at investigating an accounting scandal at Freddie Mac as well as addressing the broader subject of regulation of the two government-sponsored mortgage companies. Rep. Richard Baker, the Louisiana Republican who heads the Capital Markets Subcommittee of the House Financial Services Committee, said the companies' "lack of cooperation" was "unfortunate." He indicated he might seek a subpoena, although the more likely outcome appeared to be that the hearing would be rescheduled for September. The incident underscored the potentially high stakes involved in the recent problems at Freddie Mac. Last month, the company ousted three of its top executives, including its chairman, amid a continuing re-examination of its books. The restatement is expected to involve $1.5 billion to $4.5 billion in earnings. The Securities and Exchange Commission and other agencies are investigating whether company executives took improper steps to smooth earnings. The flare-up also exposed signs of a potential rift between Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which typically show a united front in their frequent dealings with Congress over their charters. This time, Freddie Mac officials issued a statement denying Rep. Baker's assertion. "We were prepared to testify," said David Palombi, a Freddie Mac spokesman. "We never said to Rep. Baker's staff or anyone else that we would not be attending." But Fannie Mae officials confirmed the company opted not to testify. "Since Fannie Mae has no specific knowledge of, or insights into, Freddie Mac's issues, we respectfully declined the invitation to testify at this time," Fannie Mae spokesman Chuck Greener said. To the extent the hearing was about broader regulatory issues that also apply to Fannie Mae, the company said it is better to wait until administration officials make their position public. That likely will be delayed, too. Treasury Secretary John Snow had been set to testify before Congress later this month on those issues. But he postponed his appearance this week, citing scheduling conflicts. He is expected to testify in early September. By then, Freddie Mac is likely to have released the results of its internal investigation.