True. It's unclear exactly how the federal government "implicitly" backed Fannie and Freddie, besides occasional congressional meddling and the companies' histo

True. It's unclear exactly how the federal government "implicitly" backed Fannie and Freddie, besides occasional congressional meddling and the companies' history as GSEs, but other financial agencies and investors treated them as if they knew the government would step in if there was a problem -- and it turns out they were right.