Well, we at FT Alphaville never thought we’d see a conservative news organisation going after a Republican-controlled institution, but here it is.
Fox Business Network is pulling a Bloomberg and sueing the US Treasury for info on its use of bailout funds — specifically those relating to AIG and Citi (perhaps they’re viewed as more liberal than other bailout fund-recipients?).
From a statement on their web site:
FOX Business Network has filed a lawsuit against the United States Treasury Department over failure to provide information on the bailout funds or respond to FBN’s expedited requests filed under the Freedom of Information Act [FOIA].
The initial request, filed on November 25, sought actual data on the use of the bailout funds for American International Group and the Bank of New York Mellon, and an additional request, filed on December 1, sought similar data on the bailout funds for Citigroup, Inc. FBN is asking for the Treasury Department to identify, among other issues, the troubled assets purchased, any collateral extended, and any restrictions placed on these financial institutions for their participation in this program.
Kevin Magee, Executive Vice President, FOX News commented, “The Treasury has repeatedly ignored our requests for information on how the government is allocating money to these troubled institutions. In a critical time like this amidst mounting corruptions and an economic crisis, we as a news organization feel it’s more important than ever to hold the government accountable.”
Of course, Bloomberg’s attempt to find out who’s receiving $2 trillion of emergency loans and what kind of collateral the Fed was accepting failed, with the central bank saying it considered the info a trade secret and commercially-sensitive. Thus we shouldn’t be holding our breath for this Fox one to succeed:
In any case, Bloomberg is still mentioning the law suit in an interesting story out today:
Dec. 18 (Bloomberg) — Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke is basing hundreds of billions in emergency lending on credit ratings from companies that gave AAA grades to toxic securities.
The Fed has purchased $308.5 billion in commercial paper and lent $631.8 billion under eight credit programs, most of which require appraisals of short-term debt and loan collateral by “major nationally recognized statistical ratings organizations.” That, in effect, means Moody’s Investors Service, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings…
It’s impossible to gauge the analysis of debt in the Fed programs because the bank won’t reveal whom it’s lending to or the assets accepted as collateral.
Bloomberg News requested details under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act and filed a federal lawsuit Nov. 7 seeking to force disclosure. In its Dec. 8 response to the lawsuit, the central bank said it was allowed to withhold information about trade secrets and commercial information.Related links:
Fed loans guided by raters grading subprime debt AAA - Bloomberg
Bloomberg goes to Washington - FT Alphaville
How to handle the truth - FT Alphaville
