The Treasury Department acknowledged today that Enron's president sought government help in receiving a credit extension while the staggering energy company was trying to avoid bankruptcy last fall.

A Treasury spokeswoman said today that Enron President Lawrence "Greg" Whalley asked Undersecretary for Domestic Finance Peter Fisher to intervene with bankers to help the company get a much-needed credit extension. Undersecretary Fisher spoke with Whalley six or eight times in late October and early November, but did not intervene on the company's behalf. With the Enron controversy reaching a fever pitch, members of the Bush administration have been downplaying the significance of contacts they've had with the beleagured energy company's CEO Kenneth Lay. The White House has acknowledged contacts between Enron's CEO and Cabinet members, disclosing that Lay contacted both Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill and Commerce Secretary Don Evans last fall, as the firm was entering a very public downward spiral leading to the biggest bankruptcy filing in U.S. history. But in an interview with ABC's Good Morning America, Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill said Lay's call was simply to give the Treasury secretary a "heads-up" about the financial problems the company was having, not to ask for government help. President Bush has also said he never talked about the firm's prospects with Lay. On Wednesday, the Justice Department signaled that it had formed a special task force to investigate Enron, which last month filed the biggest bankruptcy claim in U.S. history. What is now the largest criminal investigation ever launched against a corporation is expected to scrutinize whether Enron used off-the-books investment vehicles to hide the severe financial problems that led to its sudden downfall. The criminal probe will be based in Washington but will involve federal prosecutors from around the country, Justice Department officials said.