Over the last six months , with the help of Tim Geithner at the New York Federal Reserve Bank and Ben Bernanke at the Federal Reserve , he has driven Bear Stearns into the arms of J. P. Morgan at a fire sale price ; he has forced the board of Fannie Mae to enable a government takeover even though it meant devastation for shareholders ; he has stared down Richard Fuld at Lehman Brothers , who thought he could bluff Paulson into saving the firm ; and he has negotiated brutal terms with AIG to save them from outright failure with a government bailout .