STEVE INSKEEP, host: NPR's Business News starts with an audit for the Federal Reserve.</s>STEVE INSKEEP, host: No less than the chairman of the Fed himself, Ben Bernanke, is calling for a full review of the Fed's $182 billion bailout of AIG. Bernanke sent a letter yesterday to the Government Accountability Office. That's the investigative arm of Congress. And he said he would welcome an investigation into the Fed's decisions and actions in the bailout. This is a conciliatory move, which comes at a key moment for Bernanke. His term as Fed chief is up at the end of the month, and some members of Congress are working to block confirmation for his next term.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has taken the unusual step of asking the investigative arm of Congress to conduct a "full review" of the Fed's role bailing out AIG. The Fed chief's move is aimed at defusing criticism of the government's $182 billion rescue of the insurance giant. The bailout sparked public outrage and demands in Congress for more information.