Congressional investigators say documents prove the Fed threatened to oust bank CEO

September 22nd, 2009 Prosecutors: Baltimore mayor's $10K is a mysteryBALTIMORE — Investigators looking into Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon's finances can't determine the source of nearly $10,000 in cash that was deposited into her bank accounts in 2004, according to court documents. The Democratic mayor faces trial in November on charges including perjury and theft.

September 22nd, 2009 Bank of America will give Congress more documentsWASHINGTON — Bank of America Corp. will hand over more documents to a congressional committee probing its hastily arranged acquisition of troubled brokerage house Merrill Lynch.

September 10th, 2009 Stanford former security director chargedWASHINGTON — The former director of security for accused swindler Allen Stanford has been charged with destroying documents in the investigation into the alleged multibillion-dollar fraud. Federal prosecutors say Thomas Raffanello, who worked at Stanford Financial Group's office in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., ordered a subordinate to shred documents after they were told to keep documents for federal investigators.

September 3rd, 2009 Treasury concedes independence of bailout watchdogWASHINGTON — The Treasury Department has decided not to challenge the independence of the government watchdog agency that Congress created to oversee spending of the $700 billion rescue package for the financial sector. The confrontation between Treasury and the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program, SIGTARP, had prompted congressional complaints that the Obama administration was seeking to restrain the work of inspector general Neil Barofsky.

July 16th, 2009 Paulson says he pressured Bank of America CEOWASHINGTON — Former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson testified on Thursday that he pressured Bank of America Corp. last year to go through with its plans to buy Merrill Lynch but didn't tell the bank's chief to hide potential losses from shareholders.

July 16th, 2009 Paulson says he threatened bank chief executiveWASHINGTON — Former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson says he was justified last year in suggesting that Bank of America Corp.'s chief executive could lose his job if the bank backed out on plans to buy troubled Merrill Lynch. His admission, included in written testimony for a House hearing Thursday, comes as Congress debates the government's role in managing financial firms that accept billions of dollars in aid.

July 14th, 2009 House intel lays groundwork for CIA investigationWASHINGTON — The House Intelligence Committee has asked the CIA to provide the committee with documents about the now-canceled program to target al-Qaida leaders with hit teams. CIA Director Leon Panetta told Congress June 24 that he had canceled the program after learning about the effort to kill al-Qaida leaders.

July 14th, 2009 AP sources: House lays groundwork for CIA probeWASHINGTON — The CIA spent at least $1 million on the secret intelligence program that aimed to develop hit squads to kill al-Qaida leaders but never went beyond the planning stage, a congressional official said Tuesday. The highly classified program, which never became operational but remained in existence until it was shut down by CIA Director Leon Panetta in June, is expected to trigger a congressional investigation, other officials said.

July 9th, 2009 Fed focused on commercial loansWASHINGTON — A Federal Reserve official says the central bank is paying extra attention to banks' books as losses from sour commercial real estate loans keep mounting. Jon D. Greenlee, associate director of the Fed's division of banking supervision, says in remarks prepared for a Congressional hearing Thursday that the central bank has stepped up training of its bank examiners so they are ready to deal with rising losses from the commercial real estate industry.

June 29th, 2009 Paulson to testify July 16 about BofA-Merrill dealWASHINGTON — Former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson will testify next month before a House committee that's investigating whether he and other government officials pressured Bank of America Corp. to acquire Merrill Lynch in a deal that cost taxpayers $20 billion.

June 25th, 2009 Fed chairman Bernanke faces House committee todayWASHINGTON — Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke likely will face hostile questions from a House committee investigating whether he and other government officials pressured Bank of America Corp. into a "shotgun wedding" with Merrill Lynch that cost taxpayers $20 billion.

June 25th, 2009 Bernanke to face hostile questioning on BofA dealWASHINGTON — Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke likely will face hostile questions from a House committee investigating whether he and other government officials pressured Bank of America Corp. into a "shotgun wedding" with Merrill Lynch that cost taxpayers $20 billion.

June 19th, 2009 House targets Fed in Bank of America investigationWASHINGTON — A House panel has subpoenaed documents that lawmakers say could shed new light on Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's role in Bank of America's acquisition of Merrill Lynch. The subpoena comes ahead of a hearing next week in which Bernanke is scheduled to testify.

May 5th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Ailing car maker Chrysler, the US' third largest, projects it will be back in the black by 2012 if it gets through bankruptcy quick enough and seals its deal with Italy's Fiat, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday. The journal cited documents filed in a Manhattan bankruptcy court, Chrysler's last resort after failing to prove to the US government that it was financially viable.

March 30th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Rihanna, who was allegedly attacked by Chris Brown and left with horrific injuries, is reportedly not ready to co-operate with the investigators probing the case. According to sources, the 'Umbrella' hitmaker "wants the whole thing" to go away, and that is why she is not helping the district attorney prepare his case against Brown for allegedly attacking her.