Washington, Apr 16, 2008 - "I am concerned with the unilateral action of the Federal Reserve in providing nearly $30 billion in loan guarantees to J.P. Morgan Chase to take over Bear Stearns and with the risk it poses to American taxpayers," said Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL). "I have joined Rep. Scott Garrett (R-NJ) in sending a letter to Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Chairman of the Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke with specific questions regarding this arrangement with J.P. Morgan Chase.
The letter states, "We are writing regarding the recent collapse of Bear Stearns and the subsequent actions taken by the Federal Reserve to facilitate Bear Stearns' sale to J.P. Morgan Chase. These steps have had an immediate impact on our nation's financial markets and have the potential to drastically alter the future regulatory structure of our entire financial system."

Stearns and Garrett included eight specific questions such as the financial arrangements for the loan and the ability of the Securities and Exchange Commission to monitor financial institutions.

Related Document:

BearStearnsLetter