On the recordMay 11, 2010
let me summarize again what the Sanders amendment does. Let me take my colleagues back to a meeting of the Budget Committee, on which I serve, about a year ago. Chairman Bernanke came before that committee. I asked him: Will you tell the committee, me, and the American people which large financial institutions received trillions of dollars of zero or near zero interest loans? I thought that was a reasonable question. Mr. Bernanke said: No, I will not do that. I will not release that information. On that day, I introduced legislation to compel him to release the information. This amendment, if passed, on December 1, 2010, would, in fact, contain that information. It is a major step forward. Secondly, many Americans are beginning to catch on--and some Senators have referred to that today--to the immense power of the Fed. People are demanding transparency at the Fed. People want to know what happens behind closed doors when some of the leaders of the largest financial institutions sit down with the Fed and, lo and behold, programs are developed which benefit those very same large financial institutions. Wouldn't it be nice, wouldn't it be great if small businesses in Vermont could end up with zero interest loans? They can't. But somehow or another, some of the largest financial institutions in this country manage to do that, and we don't know how this process goes on. Passage of the Sanders amendment is a step forward.
