In a Wall Street Journal op-ed Tuesday, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) call the bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac “outrageous, but sadly necessary,” and say they will ensure the institutions are “permanently restructured and downsized, and no longer use taxpayer backing to serve lobbyists, management, boards and shareholders.”

Obama announced he is cosponsoring a bill to establish a national catastrophe insurance program. “Every year, American families throughout the country suffer catastrophic losses due to hurricanes, earthquakes, or other natural disasters, and our existing insurance infrastructure is severely strained,” Obama said in a statement.