Obama Proposes More Powerful Fed

By Harry Kimball,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 17, 2009 1:21 PM CDT
Obama Proposes More Powerful Fed
President Barack Obama concludes his remarks on the new comprehensive regulatory reform plan.   (AP Photo)

President Obama today proposed broad new powers for the Federal Reserve and the creation of new national regulator to ensure against another financial crisis, the Wall Street Journal reports. Under the new plan, the Fed would oversee all components of any banking concern, even its foreign affiliates, and Treasury would have the power to take over and restructure any company. Obama called it a “sweeping overhaul.”

Obama proposed dismantling the Office of Thrift Supervision in favor of a more centralized regulatory approach that would be harder to sneak around. He also wants hedge funds to register with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and proposes a catchall council to “tackle issues that don't fit neatly in an organizational chart.” The plan as written, with its generous increase in federal powers, is likely to face stiff opposition in Congress. (More President Obama stories.)

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