McCain and Palin urge Fannie, Freddie restructuring

Republican presidential nominee Senator John McCain (R-AZ) and Republican vice-presidential nominee Alaska Governor Sarah Palin (L) stand together onstage at a campaign rally in Albuquerque, New Mexico September 6, 2008.

(Reuters) - Republican White House nominees John McCain and Sarah Palin would ensure mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were permanently restructured and downsized, the pair wrote in The Wall Street Journal.

In an opinion column, they said the bailout of the country's two biggest mortgage finance companies "gets at the short-term heart of the problem". They also said they would no longer use taxpayer backing to serve lobbyists, management, boards and shareholders.

The government seized control of the companies on Sunday, launching what could be its biggest bailout ever to support the U.S. housing market, and ward off more global financial turbulence. The action was prompted by worries over the companies' shrinking capital.

"In the future, Fannie, Freddie or any government organization should never insure a loan when the homeowner doesn't have enough of his or her own capital in the investment," McCain and Palin wrote in the column.

Democratic nominee Barack Obama has called the rescue plan a necessary move and said he'd be reviewing the details of the plan and monitoring its impact.

The presidential nominees could not be immediately reached for comment.

(Reporting by Ajay Kamalakaran in Bangalore; editing by Sue Thomas)