Congressman Ron Paul on AIG/Geithner

Washington, D.C. - Congressman Ron Paul (TX-14) issues the following statement regarding recent revelations that then New York Fed Chair Timothy Geithner urged AIG to avoid disclosing to the SEC details of agreements with banks that bailed out credit default swap counterparties such as Goldman Sachs:

“The new details revealed today regarding AIG’s bailout in 2008 come as no surprise to those of us who believe that the American people deserve full transparency from the Federal Reserve. It also demonstrates why defenders of the Fed are so adamant about ‘independence’ by which they really mean secrecy. My strong suspicion is that secret arrangements between cronies like this are not an anomaly, but the norm. The status quo has made it entirely too easy and too tempting to behave recklessly with public funds in total secrecy. The system needs radical change, but we should start with honesty, transparency and accountability to the American people about how their money is being handled.”