What Obama might do with TARP
TEXT OF STORY
Scott Jagow: Could be something for the Obama administration to consider. Tomorrow, Obama takes the oath of office — and then he has to figure out what to do with the second half of the TARP fund. More now from Ashley Milne-Tyte.
Ashley Milne-Tyte: The incoming economic team says there is a big difference between their and the Bush administration’s approach to the financial crisis.
Larry Summers, director of Obama’s National Economic Council, spoke yesterday on CBS’s Face the Nation:
Larry Summers: Focus isn’t gonna be on the needs of banks — it’s gonna be on the needs of the economy for credit, whether it’s for housing to prevent foreclosures, whether it’s for automobile loans, consumer credit, small business.
Obama’s team is keeping quiet on specific details of their plan to help consumers. One possibility is the creation of a government-run so-called “bad bank.” The idea is to acquire troubled assets clogging the financial system. That would liberate financial institutions’ balance sheets, giving them more room to lend.
The Obama administration is expected to make an announcement on the economy later this week.
In New York, I’m Ashley Milne-Tyte for Marketplace.
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