Bailout cop: Treasury set 'unrealistic expectations'

This article is about federal officials weren't entirely honest with the public about the health of the first 9 financial firms that got federal bailouts, according to a report released Monday.Bailout special inspector general Neil Barofsky says in an audit that Treasury Department officials painted an overly rosy picture when they called the first bailout banks "healthy" institutions that would be able to lend more with government help. Some people knew that some banks weren't healthy to lend out money. They are saying one thing but they didn't do the research to make sure. The banks did not lend as much money as the people would want to see. The tarp did not help stability. SigTARP has opened 35 ongoing criminal and civil investigations looking for fraud, with a focus on banks that falsely applied for a bailout and those that used the TARP name in scams.Barofsky gives the major players the benefit of the doubt. He acknowledges that Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke and then-Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson wanted the deal to go through, fearing the potential failure of Merrill Lynch and the "collateral damage to the economy.


It was wrong to lie to the public about banks being healthy and lend out money. How are people going to believe what is going on if we don't tell the truth about things. It was wrong not to do the research on the banks. I think the treasury needs to work harder.