Neel Kashkari, the Bush administration holdover who remains assistant Treasury Secretary for financial stability, just told Rep. Dennis Kucinich’s (D-OH) House oversight subcommittee that the department does “get calls” from members of Congress as well as governors seeking to weigh in on which banks get bailout money from the government.
Kashkari’s admission came in response to Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA), who asked him about a recent report that House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-MA) and Ohio lawmakers interceded with Treasury to help win aid for their home-state banks.
“It’s important for us to get feedback” from politicians on their local businesses, Kashkari said. But he underscored that a process has been put in place to ensure that political concerns don’t influence the disbursement of bailout money, adding: “I feel confident that there is no undue influence at Treasury … I’m concerned that these stories are out there because they undermine confidence.”
