The Whole Picture

Setting the Record Straight: Taxpayers Not Funding JP Morgan's Bear Buyout

Actually, you could argue that the "bailout" actually improved government revenues. The fed may never be required to provide a single dollar to fund the guarantee of Bear Stearns. However, the stability it created likely reduced the amount of losses investors would have incurred -- not just for Bear Stearns investors, but for many investors in the financial sectors. Reducing losses means reduced tax deductions. The result is more money for the federal government, not less. So, in some ways, this "bailout" reduced the potential taxpayer burden.
Of course, this does not address the costs of "easy money," which has it's own problems. By flooding the economy with easy money, the Fed certainly contributed to the housing crisis / finanicial collapse in the first place. That is where the taxpayers really were hit.