Despite Fitch Ratings’ analysts suggesting recently that reforming Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac may be slowed by the Trump administration’s other legislative efforts, one of President Trump’s top economic advisors said Friday that Fannie and Freddie reform will be high on Steve Mnuchin’s agenda once he is confirmed as Secretary of the Department of the Treasury.
Making the rounds Friday to discuss Trump’s financial reform plans, Gary Cohn, the White House National Economic Council Director and a former top executive at Goldman Sachs, told CNBC that government-sponsored enterprise reform is “definitely on our agenda.”
According to Cohn, while Mnuchin awaits confirmation amid a fight in the Senate, he has been focusing on GSE reform.
“Mnuchin has been spending a lot of time working on (GSE reform),” Cohn told the CNBC panel during an interview Friday. “Once he gets approved and confirmed, Steve will be taking that on as one of his early priorities.”
Cohn said that the Trump administration “definitely” has plans to work on GSE reform, adding that he hopes Mnuchin is approved by the Senate as soon as possible.
In a separate interview with the Wall Street Journal, Cohn said that the Treasury will be working on the “overhaul” of the GSEs.
Here’s how the WSJ characterized Cohn’s comments:
Mr. Cohn laid out a road map for how the Trump administration plans to target new financial rules. He said the Treasury Department would lead an effort to overhaul mortgage-finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which were put into government conservatorship after the crisis.
To hear Cohn in his own words, check out the video below from his appearance on CNBC.
