The House has just passed the most comprehensive response yet to the American mortgage crisis. The American Housing Rescue & Foreclosure Prevention Act, H.R. 3221, will help families facing foreclosure keep their homes, help other families avoid foreclosures in the future, and help the recovery of communities harmed by empty homes caught in the foreclosure process. To shore up the housing market and ensure the availability of affordable home loans, the bill would put a tough, independent new regulator in charge of the housing Government Sponsored Enterprises, or GSEs (Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Home Loan Banks), which are vital to both the financial markets and American homeowners. The new regulator will be far better prepared to quickly and effectively respond to issues affecting the safe and sound operation of these enterprises. The centerpiece of the bill will help significant numbers of hard-working American families in danger of losing their home refinance into lower-cost government -insured mortgages they can afford to repay -- at no cost to the American taxpayer. President Bush rescinded his veto threat on the legislation this morning. Rep. Barney Frank spoke in favor.

PlusFannie, Freddie Rescue Pushes Housing AidFannie, Freddie Rescue Pushes Housing AidThe Associated PressA foreclosure aid plan that was facing a sluggish trip through Congress has a powerful new engine behind it: the Bush administration's urgent request to rescue mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. (July 14)(Markets file, housing file, Fannie) With fresh turmoil in financial markets, and the housing slump upending another financial institution, the Bush administration's moving aggressively to shore up mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.(Bernanke) To quiet investor fears about the two, it's told Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke to extend the pair a line of credit, and told Congress it wants to authority to buy up some of their shares. PAULSON SOT: "We must take steps to address the current situation as we move toward a stronger regulatory structure." FONT: Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson(Fannie file) Between them, Fannie and Freddie either own or guarantee HALF of America's mortgages, but their shares have been clobbered by fears they're low on cash. ANALYST SOT: "The biggest part of that move down, is because investors were getting concerned they were going to need to raise capital and they really didn't know how they were going to do that." FONT: Art Hogan, Chief Market Analyst, Jefferies and Company And the White House is hopeful Congress will move quickly on it.PERINO SOT: (14:30 from start) ... because we think this is urgent pieces of legislation that need to get done and that will be important for increasing confidence and stability in the market. (Fed file, housing file) The moves came as the Fed approved new lending rules aimed at thwarting the aggressive practices that fueled the sub-prime mortgage mess...(IndyMac exteriors - FONT THE LOCATION) ... and as a California bank swamped by bad loans re-opened under new management: Uncle Sam's. Officials says it's business as usual at IndyMac Bank, but customers remain worried after second-biggest financial institution failure yet. INDMOS(Standup close) What's unclear is whether the lifeline for the two mortgage giants and the Fed's new lending rules go far enough to calm markets AND homeowners. And then there's something NOBODY can know right now: whether the slumping housing market has yet hit bottom.MS, AP, WH

President Bush reiterated his call on Tuesday for Congress to lift the legislative ban on coastal oil exploration. He also assured investors that the government's rescue plan for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac did not constitute a bailout. He added that the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SRP) is for emergencies, and doesn't address the fundamental issue of gasoline prices. President Bush also said the government's rescue package for the nation's two largest mortgage companies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, are only temporary and that shareholders still own the company.