The U.S. Senate voted unanimously to force the Federal Reserve to undergo an audit, for the first time, by Congress’ investigative arm. But the proposed legislation would only allow for a one-time examination by the Government Accountability Office that would focus on the Fed’s rescue of banks during the financial crisis of 2008.
Representative Ron Paul (R-Texas) and others have advocated for regular audits of the Fed, but just such a proposal, presented by David Vitter (R-Louisiana), was defeated on Tuesday by a vote of 62-37. Among those who voted against regular audits were the leaders of both political parties, Harry Reid (D-Nevada) and Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky).
-Noel Brinkerhoff, David Wallechinsky
Senate Passes "Audit the Fed" Amendment, Rejects Proposal for Ongoing Audit (by Michael Smallberg, Project on Government Oversight)Senate OKs Fed Audit as Part of Bank Overhaul (by Kevin Drawbaugh and Andy Sullivan, Reuters)Senate Rejects True Transparency: Vitter’s Audit the Fed Amendment Fails 37-62 (RonPaul.com)Bill to Audit Federal Reserve Moves Forward (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)Americans Support Ron Paul Plan to Audit the Federal Reserve (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)Ron Paul’s “Audit the Fed” Bill to be Debated in the House (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)Auditing the Federal Reserve (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)
Source
