Hear ye, heat ye, all rise!
The case of Bloomberg LP v. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan), No. 08-9595.
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The Federal Judge that granted Bloomberg’s FOIA request for information about borrowers from the Federal Reserve has granted a temporary stay of execution to the Fed:
Federal Reserve has until Sept. 30 to appeal a federal judge’s order requiring the central bank to identify financial institutions that benefited from its emergency loans.
The Fed’s Board of Governors asked Manhattan Chief U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska to delay enforcement of her Aug. 24 decision that the identities of borrowers in 11 lending programs be made public by Aug. 31. The central bank wanted Preska to stay her order until the U.S. Court of Appeals in New York can hear the case.
The Fed’s “ability to effectively manage the current, and any future, financial crisis” would be impaired, according to the Fed’s motion for a stay. It said “significant harms” could befall the U.S. economy as well.
I suspect this is merely a delaying tactic, with the Fed eventually losing 3 to nothing on appeal.
It is one thing to grant immunity to sensitive defense secrets during wartime, it is something else entirely to avoid wanting to embarrass poorly run banks who needed cash, and keep crucial info from shareholders and taxpayers.
If the Appeals Court were to grant this request, then kiss the idea of an open soceity good bye. The slipperly slope downwards from this to anything else declared by any government agency to be “Important” or “Sensitive” or “Embarrassing” is the eventual result of the Fed winning their appeal.
My prediction: The Appeals court tells the Fed to go jump . . .
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Sources:
Judge Sets Sept. 30 Deadline for Fed to Appeal Disclosure Order
Mark Pittman
Bloomberg, Aug. 28 2009
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aQSMj84TPttg
Judge puts Fed’s bailout revelations on hold
Jonathan Stempel
Reuters, Aug 28, 2009 6:48pm
http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv/idUSTRE57R5BE20090828
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