Both the Federal Reserve Board and the Treasury Department have been tested with an unprecedented crisis. While Treasury has taken its lumps from a variety of critics, the Fed has fared much better. A Fortune commentary notes, "The Fed, on balance, has shown forcefulness, imagination and steadfastness in dealing with the financial market turmoil, while the Treasury's response has been largely sluggish, unfocused, and woefully incoherent."

The Fed's main moves have been toward lower short-term rates and a number of special lending facilities, all of which helped. But there are some criticisms that could be made. The debate about whether Lehman should have been saved will rage for a long time. It's fair to say the jury is still out on both the Fed and Treasury. We're still in the early innings, so to speak.

For more:
- here's the commentary

Related Articles:
Federal Reserve news from FierceFinance
Treasury news from FierceFinance