A conservative legal group is suing the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve to reveal exactly how the first $350 billion of the financial services bailout was spent.
Skyhunter said:Hopefully this will be informative.
"Freedom Watch Sues Over TARP" is a lawsuit filed by the organization Freedom Watch against the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). TARP was a government program created in 2008 to provide financial assistance to banks and other financial institutions during the financial crisis.
The lawsuit was filed by Freedom Watch, a conservative political organization, against the United States Department of the Treasury and the Federal Reserve. The defendants in the case are the Secretary of the Treasury and the Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board.
The lawsuit claims that TARP is unconstitutional because it gives the government too much power over private companies and violates the Fifth Amendment, which protects against the taking of private property without just compensation. Freedom Watch also argues that TARP has allowed the government to take over and control private companies, which goes against the principles of a free market economy.
The lawsuit was originally filed in 2009 and has been through several appeals and motions. In 2019, the Supreme Court declined to hear the case, leaving the lower court's ruling in place. The lower court had dismissed the case, stating that the plaintiffs did not have standing to sue.
If the lawsuit were to be successful, it could have a significant impact on the government's ability to intervene in the private sector during times of economic crisis. It could also set a precedent for future cases involving government intervention in the economy. However, as the case has been dismissed and appeals have been denied, it is unlikely to have a direct impact at this time.