The TARP Lie

The TARP funding was claimed to be necessary in order to prevent a freeze of the capital markets, particularly commercial lending. As you can see from the graphic above, since the time of its issuance, commercial lending has not increased, but rather has decreased. The TARP funds were in fact used in part by the Treasury to buy shares in troubled companies and to ensure that Wall Street firms with holdings in those troubled companies were protected. Large banks receiving TARP funds have used the money to buy up smaller banks and increase their reserve accounts with the Fed.