Under fire from the left and the right, Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. has a tough fight and few allies as he seeks congressional approval to top off the tank with the second $350 billion from the federal bailout fund.
Key Democrats, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California and House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank of Massachusetts, complained that the Treasury's $700 Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP, has done little to help struggling homeowners even as it has pumped out the first $350 billion to boost the balance sheets of banks and other financial firms.
"Despite Congress' clear intent that TARP be used to stem foreclosures, so far no TARP funds have been used for that purpose," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid told a forum in the Democrat's home state of Nevada last week.
