WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- U.S. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., said Sunday he expects the incoming Obama administration to request Congress to release the second $350-billion tranche of funds from the Troubled Asset Relief Program within days of taking office.
Kerry was speaking to reporters after exiting a meeting with his fellow Senate Democrats and Lawrence Summers, who will head President-elect Barack Obama's National Economic Council.
Kerry said Summers made the case to the lawmakers about why the release of the funds would be necessary for the federal government to continue to tackle the ongoing financial crisis.
Kerry referred to a document that is being prepared by Tim Geithner, Obama's nominee to be Treasury Secretary, and Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., that would outline the circumstances under which the second $350 billion would be used. Kerry said senators were awaiting the document before they determine whether or not to release the funds to the Treasury.
He said the Obama administration would make it known whether it wanted the TARP funds, but that it would likely be a Bush administration official who would make a formal request to Congress to release the money.
-By Corey Boles, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-6601; corey.boles@dowjones.com
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Publié le 11 janvier 2009 Copyright © 2009 Dowjones