Video: Congressman Hensarling starts at minute 3:30.

"We all knew it would happen, eventually. After 18 months of delay the Obama administration and Democrats in Congress have come clean on their plans, or lack thereof, to address bailout-dependent Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

After refusing to even consider reform of the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) during passage of the Dodd-Frank financial takeover bill, they knew they would have to address the 800 pound gorilla in the room. The result was the Obama administration?s ?Conference on the Future of Housing Finance.

Read more at the Washington Examiner:

"We are here today because the speaker of the House has declared this an emergency session. There is a national emergency: Apparently Congress has not spent enough money," said Representative Jeb Hensarling, a Texas Republican. "The American people are asking, 'What part of broke doesn't this Congress understand?" ...

Read More: San Francisco Chronicle

"(Washington, D.C.) The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) today released its 2009 Congressional Ratings, highlighting the voting records of all 535 members of Congress. The report identifies members whose stellar voting records protecting taxpayers and saving money have won them the moniker of Taxpayer Hero and Super Hero. CCAGW?s 2009 Congressional Ratings also name hundreds of members who consistently voted against the fiscal interest of taxpayers."

Read more: CAGW

Aug. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Fannie Mae, the mortgage-finance company operating under federal conservatorship, is seeking $1.5 billion in aid from the U.S. Treasury Department after a 12th straight quarterly loss.

A decline in costs from bad loans helped narrow the second- quarter loss to $1.2 billion from $14.8 billion in the same period a year earlier, the Washington-based company said today in a filing to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Fannie Mae has accrued more than $148 billion in consecutive losses since 2007, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Read more: San Francisco Chronicle

Part three of a three-part series.

Our dire fiscal and economic challenges -- coupled with Washington's insistence on making matters worse -- are no excuse for retreat or despair. They are cause for inspiration and determination.

The stakes of the debt debate present not only a challenge -- but also a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reclaim the promise and prosperity of this great nation. By acting now, a debt crisis can be averted by reforming government on our own terms.

Americans need not suffer from painful austerity plans imposed from lenders abroad. Instead, we can put in place a prosperity plan that recommits government to its proper role and rejuvenates the vibrant market economy that made America the envy of the world.

Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/columns/A-road-map-to-America_s-future-96982629.html#ixzz0rmVf7ztA

With each passing week, fresh warning signs from the markets, government reports, or events overseas underscore the need to tackle our dire fiscal and economic picture. Yet Congress stubbornly refuses to acknowledge this reality, as each week results in a fight over how much further we should expand the deficit and how much deeper should we fall into debt.

The starting point for tackling this challenge is the federal budget. For families, organizations, and businesses alike, a budget sets priorities and forces tough decisions.

Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/columns/We-need-to-cut-spending-now-96923989.html#ixzz0rglXGJNY

Over the course of the past few weeks Americans have been shocked to learn how dangerously mired in debt our nation has become. The U.S. debt rose past $13 trillion this month, about 89 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), and the International Monetary Fund now projects that the U.S. government's debt will surpass GDP in 2012, a mere 18 months from now -- with no plan in place to set our nation's finances on sustainable course.

Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/columns/Big-government-debt-mortgages-our-children_s-future-96330749.html#ixzz0rVFeiVZX

WASHINGTON - Views of the nation's debt problem are rather different from Republican and Democratic congressional districts.

"The deficit is the symptom. Spending is the disease," said Rep. Jeb Hensarling, a Dallas Republican and self-declared fiscal hawk.

In a neighboring district, Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson , a Dallas Democrat, agrees that overspending has been a problem, but mainly because Republicans insist on cutting taxes without giving up anything.

WASHINGTON - Negotiators from the House and Senate gathered on Thursday to merge two bills representing the most comprehensive changes to financial regulation since the Depression, but the script they acted out was largely being written elsewhere.

Republicans quickly accused Democrats of largely putting on a political show in the form of seven days of televised meetings, including debates scheduled over the next two weeks. The White House wants a final bill on President Obama?s desk by July 4.