This Times editorial mentions Sen. Inouye’s contact with a bank.  Not just any bank.  The Senator owns hundreds of thousands of dollars in stock in the bank.  After the call, the bank got $135 million in Troubled Asset Relief Program funds, according to the editorial.

Like so much of the recession challenge, lawmakers’ lobbying for bailout money occurred in uncharted territory. Lessons are to be learned, particularly about the need to shore up any ethical shortcomings when Congress directly presses for government favors.