TARP: One Big Success but Many More Failures

The Congressional Oversight Panel monitoring the Troubled Asset Relief Program concluded in its December report that TARP "proved decisive enough to stop the panic and restore market confidence," but failed to address many of the "ongoing problems" in the financial markets and the broader economy. Even in light of its failures, the panel stopped short of calling for the end of TARP. Indeed, only one member of the panel did that: U.S. Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas), the top Republican on the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit.