Frank: Fed Will Face Audit

Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) told a crowd at a town-hall meeting that the House will pass a bill by October requiring a "complete audit" of the Federal Reserve, with limiting its lending power in mind. Frank chairs the House Financial Services Committee and said he wants "to restrict the power of the Fed in a number of ways." Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) introduced the bill, which is supported by a majority of the House. Frank said he wants to curtail the Fed's lending power. "[Ron Paul] agrees that we don't want to have the audit appear as if it is influencing monetary policy, because that would be inflationary and Ron and I agree on that," Frank said. Politicizing monetary policy would destabilize the financial system, say proponents of an independent monetary policy, which include members of both parties. Frank said information about the Fed's audit will be made public, but at a delay, to avoid impacting the market.