Doing recon over my bad-guy targets, seeing who may be doing what and why!!

Calabria in no hurry to fix what the White House said needs fixing!

Despite Steve Mnuchin’s two years of passionate, periodic preaching about this Administration’s need to end the 11-year-old GSE Conservatorship--putting Fannie and Freddie back in private hands with fresh capital—a specific objective also amplified by President Trump  when the POTUS addressed the National Association of Realtors annual conference this past May, seemingly that timetable was changed last week by a rookie.

The Trump-Mnuchin policy declaration apparently has been watered down  to ending GSE Conservatorship "sometime before new Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Mark Calabria finishes his five-year term in 2024." (Emphasis, Maloni's.)

At least that’s what Director Calabria—prancing very high on his implicit “I’m the GSE czar” horse—seems to believe and proclaimed last week to the Reuters News Service.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-fannie-freddie-stocks/fannie-mae-freddie-mac-shares-down-on-5-year-timeline-overhaul-idUSKCN1UD23F

In contrast to his boss, the President, and his senior colleague, Mnuchin, Calabria expressed little urgency last week to help aspiring US homeowners, address any GSE mission concerns, or remove the GSEs from Uncle Sam's clutches, let alone the need to follow through on what the Trump Administration often has vowed and promised in appearances and public statements.

Is their a schism here? Are we having a failure to communicate? Did you get and read the memo, Mark?

With the Director's self-created new schedule, Burger King may consider suing since the Trump Administration’s forgotten rhetoric seems to have co-opted the hamburger chain’s “Whopper” trademark.

Of course, saying something misleading--to pacify one audience and doing the opposite to sooth a competing group--ain’t nothing new to this Admin crew. In fact, it seems like standard operating procedure, with a hint that some other nefarious group--not this White House--is blocking its GSE path.

“It’s not you or me, but the guy behind the tree,” (to steal a line from Senate Finance Committee legend Sen. Russell Long (D-La.), which he often used to demonstrate on what tax targets a demanding, but indifferent public, wanted Congress to levy new federal fees.

But there is no GSE advocacy group to blame here, hiding behind any homeownership tree or anywhere else.

It’s just the Trump Treasury and the Trump FHFA which can’t seem to get their traditional complementary acts together.

Of course, who knows where arch-GSE enemy Larry Kudlow is lurking or even the current acting Chief of Staff of the POTUS, former OMB Director and equally no GSE friend, Mick Mulvaney. They, easily, could be *&^%$#@ things up... because they can.

Why is Mark Calabria punching suddenly so far above his weight and dissing the Treasury Secretary, showing little fear?

Things are July boring, so let me "Maloni-splain."

My simple answer is Mnuchin is the target of some creeps in/near the White House who covet his job or dislike him (or his actress spouse who doesn't care for DC) and think by goading Calabria into action they’ll expose Mnuchin as not tough/smart enough to deflect Calabria or worse lacking the WH “clout” necessary to stop the FHFA Director from poaching on what traditionally has been Treasury’s leadership role on financial services matters.

In a transparent defense for his possible aggrandizing hubris, Calabria points out in his Reuters interview Mnuchin is now "juggling a number of balls" (which shouldn't mean Calabria can worm in and do his GSE thing because Mnuchin is worried about the Budget, China, Iran, etc).
And what better way to make Mnuchin look bad than aiding and abetting a political wonk and newbie who has his own ideological aspirations?
Ugly form, but that's how DC works, especially under President Trump.

I think either Kudlow or Mulvaney, both with sizable but flawed egos, see themselves as possible Mnuchin successors. (But does the POTUS? Likely he does not.)

BTW, if anyone sees the Fifth Circuit judges, en banc or in pairs, tell them we are waiting, but not too patiently, for their decision which could end some of the DC GSE madness.

Maloni, 7-22-2019