The hearing is underway with:
Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner and Ben S. Bernanke, the Federal Reserve chairman, are the star witnesses on Capitol Hill on Tuesday as Congress continues to examine the government’s bailout and oversight of the American International Group (and, of course, those bonuses)
CSPAN is live streaming it here.
Is that the insane Michelle Bachmann I see asking questions? Barney Frank slapped her down over the use of her time. Didn't she just say that this:
"I’m a foreign correspondent on enemy lines and I try to let everyone back here in Minnesota know exactly the nefarious activities that are taking place in Washington."
She's channeling her inner Glenn Beck and reaching out to the right wing militias.
UPDATE: Geithner asks for Broad Power to Seize Firms
Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner today told Congress the administration will seek unprecedented power to seize non-bank financial companies whose collapse could jeopardize the economy, a move Geithner said would have allowed the government to bail out insurance giant American International Group at a far lower cost to taxpayers.
...Chairman Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) seemed inclined to support Geithner's request, saying the government should have the same power over all financial services firms as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation does over banks.
"Banks also failed in 2008 . . . But the fact is that we have in place mechanisms . . . that contained the damage," Frank said. " . . . We need to give somebody, somewhere in the federal government. . . the power to do what the FDIC can do with banks.
