You're describing parts of TARP. In sum total it: - Purchased preferred stock or warrants in banks, insurance companies, and auto companies, recapitalizing th

You're describing parts of TARP. In sum total it: - Purchased preferred stock or warrants in banks, insurance companies, and auto companies, recapitalizing them, then subsequently selling that stock - Directly purchased troubled assets to remove them from bank's books and reduce uncertainty - Made a variety of loans around the financial system to encourage financial institutions to continue operations - Directly bailed out homeowners by modifying and adjusting mortgage balances and terms via HASP, HAMP, & HARP (to the tune of 32 B$USD) Afaik, the majority of those actions recouped their investment or suffered slight losses, with the exception of the last... which was designed to pay out to homeowners. The accounting off all TARP programs can be found in the CBO's annual report to Congress: https://www.cbo.gov/system/files?file=115th-congress-2017-2018/reports/53617-tarp-march2018.pdf https://www.cbo.gov/system/files?file=115th-congress-2017-20... You can't wring blood from a stone. So if the federal government does something about underperforming student debt, it's going to have to address the root cause of students being unable to service their debt.