"He proposed asking Congress to give the president broad power to
guarantee all the debt in the banking system, according to two
participants, including Michele Davis, then an assistant Treasury
secretary.

The proposal quickly died amid protests that it was politically
untenable because it could put taxpayers on the hook for trillions of
dollars.

“People thought, ‘Wow, that’s kind of out there,’ ” said John C.
Dugan, the comptroller of the currency, who heard about the idea
afterward. Mr. Geithner says, “I don’t remember a serious discussion
on that proposal then.”

But in the 10 months since then, the government has in many ways
embraced his blue-sky prescription. Step by step, through an array of
new programs, the Federal Reserve and Treasury have assumed an
unprecedented role in the banking system, using unprecedented amounts
of taxpayer money, to try to save the nation’s financiers from their
own mistakes. "

More at...

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/27/bu..._r=1&th&emc=th
--
John H

For a great time, go here first... http://tinyurl.com/d3vxvm