Sox First

Last week, I did a blog entry bemoaning the lack of oversight into the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) bailouts. Some of the banks have not been able to say where the money has gone.

Now, the US Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) has come out with a neat item tallying up the TARP hearings, and reports. Compare them to the number of TARP oversight bills passed into law and comprehensive accountings made to public agencies or the public. Absolutely zip.

As US PIRG reports: "Six months, $565 billion, 24 hearings and 364 reports later, the American taxpayers still don't know where their money has gone."

• TARP shortchanged taxpayers $78 billion
• Bailout warnings
• Taxpayers lose out on bank bailout
• TARP fraud investigations
• Bailout transparency problems continue
• Banks misused TARP funds
• Gouging with the bailout?