Rep. Ron Paul, R.-Texas, accused Rep. Mel Watt, D.-North Carolina, of taking nearly all the transparency provisions out of H.R. 1207, the bill which was intended to require a full audit of the Federal Reserve and its activities.
Paul says that without such provisions, the bill is nearly worthless. Watt's home district includes the headquarters of Bank of America, and most of his campaign contributions have come from real estate, finance and insurance corporations.
Included among Watt's biggest donors are American Express, Wachovia, Bank of America and the American Bankers Association. More than a third of his total campaign treasury was donated by the financial industry. Paul intends to fight for the bill.
