Bailout Campaign Day 3: Paulson and Bernanke in the House

By  David Murdock on Sep 25, 2008

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By Wednesday of Financial Meltdown Week much of the real business of the Wall Street Bailout was being conducted behind closed doors. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, Jr. and Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke made another public appearance on the Hill but the tone and tenor of this hearing varied greatly from the previous day's tense Senate grilling. House Finance Committee chair, Barney Frank, who is one of the key players negotiating behind the scenes with Treasury and the Fed, didn't even bother to ask questions of the witnesses. The rank and file legislators had a chance to air their concerns to Paulson and Bernanke before the cameras but any specific issues raised during the two-hour hearing were deflected and left for leadership to hammer out in private. A bill covering those specifics is slated to emerge into the spotlight this weekend.