Bailout Increasingly Unpopular in Congress

The Bush Administration continues to aggressively push its Wall Street bailout plan on Congress, where it's reaching a surprising amount of resistance. Congressional Leaders in the House and Senate are still trying to cut a deal with Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson, but the bailout seems to be getting more unpopular by the day with rank-and-file members of Congress from both parties.

Democrats are unhappy because the bailout favors Wall Street over Main Street. Republicans are unhappy about the $700 billion cost and expansion of "big government."

Matt Stoller of Open Left has been doing an excellent job of monitoring how members of Congress are reacting. Here's a great clip from Ohio Democratic Representative Marcy Kaptur:

On the other side, Republican web strategist Patrick Ruffini has been urging Republicans to vote against the bailout. "God Himself couldn't have given rank-and-file Republicans a better opportunity to create political space between themselves and the Administration," Ruffini blogged earlier this week.

The economic downturn has thus far benefitted the Democrats politically, but the politics of the bailout are still explosive. Ruffini is right that Republicans could help themselves by voting against a huge and unpopular deal while Democrats could also get in trouble, ironically, for aligning themselves too closely with the Administration. However, neither party wants to be blamed for doing nothing if the economy tanks further, upping the likelihood that some sort of plan might pass.

Thus far, Obama and McCain have sounded similar notes on the subject, calling for more oversight and consumer protections but cautiously supporting the Treasury/Fed effort.

Comments (15)

1. "On the other side, Republican web strategist Patrick Ruffini has been urging Republicans to vote against the bailout. "God Himself couldn't have given rank-and-file Republicans a better opportunity to create political space between themselves and the Administration," Ruffini blogged earlier this week."

   And that's key....NOBODY wants to be tied to Dubya anymore...nobody.

   Plus they get to keep their "let the Markets decide" principles.

   Posted by Maskdelta at 09/24/2008 @ 1:03pm

2. Why can't the $700B be given to the people? Why is it going to the banks?

   Funny, no one in government or the mainstream media is asking this simple question.

   Do any of you think about that? Why aren't we all together in the streets over this?

   Posted by freiheit1 at 09/24/2008 @ 1:15pm

3. Mask, you are revealing your absolute ignorance over this by trying to make it partisan.

   But that's the role of a useful idiot.

   Good job!

   Posted by freiheit1 at 09/24/2008 @ 1:45pm

4. Why aren't we all together in the streets over this?

   Posted by freiheit1 at 09/24/2008 @ 1:15pm

   moose lipstick.

   Posted by frosty zoom at 09/24/2008 @ 1:45pm

5. A couple of things here...

   Firstly... Anyone who did a casual review of GWB's business 'experience'... could not help but predict this event and this outcome.

   Secondly... Socializing the losses and privatizing the gains of 'too big to fail' business conglomerates... while at the same time socializing the gains and privatizing the losses of hundreds of thousands of small businesses across the country...

   ...is bound to infuriate the average practitioners of the 'American dream'...

   Posted by ttr at 09/24/2008 @ 1:45pm

6. I'm too distracted by the Clay Aiken announcement to really consentrate on the economy and stuff.

   Posted by freiheit1 at 09/24/2008 @ 1:46pm

7. Do any of you think about that? Why aren't we all together in the streets over this?----Posted by freiheit1 at 09/24/2008 @ 1:15pm

   As the old joke goes, "What do you mean WE, white man?" said Tonto.

   FREI, you walked with Bush and the Republicans every step of the way down the wide path...

   now that they're stepping through the Gates of Hell....

   suddenly you want to join the Angelic Choir!

   Posted by Maskdelta at 09/24/2008 @ 1:51pm

8. Posted by freiheit1 at 09/24/2008 @ 1:45pm

   freiheit, Tax money pays for roads, schools, fire stations, police stations, bridges, sewer systems etc. Taxes are not evil. Taxes used properly are a good thing, not a bad thing.

   I agree with you though that throwing money at wall street is a bad thing. Mask is dead right here. The rethugs won't be able to say that the market is self correcting if the fed has to bail their sorry asses out. It's better to let the weak fail than to admit that the ever popular free market system can't correct itself.

   Posted by Wolfgang1 at 09/24/2008 @ 1:54pm

9. Wolfgang, what "free markets" are you referring to?

   And let me ask you this. When have I ever spoken out against taxation? Ever? I have only been outspoken against our tax system.

   But ask Barney Frank if the Democrats are going to be any different than the Republicans.

   Wolfgang, you are hardly the angelic choir. You are so partisan you are blind to the truth.

   Posted by freiheit1 at 09/24/2008 @ 2:06pm

10. Wolfgang, you are hardly the angelic choir. You are so partisan you are blind to the truth.

    Posted by freiheit1 at 09/24/2008 @ 2:06pm

    No I'm not. As I've said many times here. I used to be considered a middle fo the road person. Now, I appear to be a blind partisan dem. Problem is that this nation has shifted so god damned far to the right that anything to the left of Rush Limbaugh is considered a hard core democrat. Back in the day, my politcal views were about 35% on the rethug side and 65% on the dem side.

    The rethug party is the one that has polarized this nation with it's fanatical religious crap along with the neo conservative doctrine pushed down our throats by the likes of Milton Friedman...Ronald Reagan's hero. Corporatist bullshit is running pretty much everything and their greed has run everything into the ground.

    Posted by Wolfgang1 at 09/24/2008 @ 2:18pm

11. Wolfgang1, nope, you don't get it. And that's a shame too, because you are in the game. You care and are passionate.

    But you still think what is happening today is a partisan issue. You blame corporations and invisible enemies, when the real cause is the very visable collusion of Congress and the Federal Reserve.

    Go ahead and blame the puppets. I wish you'd openly take a look who really controls the strings. I would think you would want to do that.

    I'm ashamed I'm not in the streets protesting this. We should all be.

    Posted by freiheit1 at 09/24/2008 @ 3:05pm

12. Posted by Wolfgang1 at 09/24/2008 @ 2:18pm

    Well, buck up, WOLF.....Dubya just drove the last nail into the coffin of the "Reagan Revolution".

    Most conservative GOP President ever....wet dream of the Religious Right....only Prez to CUT TAXES going into a war....

    and he just said "We can't let the Market fix it, we need government intervention and billions of tax-payer dollars to fix it!"

    And sealed the GOP brand to that idea.

    Posted by Maskdelta at 09/24/2008 @ 3:06pm

13. "As every individual, therefore, endeavors as much as he can both to employ his capital in the support of domestic industry, and so to direct that industry that its produce may be of the greatest value; every individual necessarily labours to render the annual revenue of the society as great as he can. He generally, indeed, neither intends to promote the public interest, nor knows how much he is promoting it. By preferring the support of domestic to that of foreign industry, he intends only his own security; and by directing that industry in such a manner as its produce may be of the greatest value, he intends only his own gain, and he is in this, as in many other cases, led by an invisible hand to promote an end which was no part of his intention. Nor is it always the worse for the society that it was no part of it. By pursuing his own interest he frequently promotes that of the society more effectually than when he really intends to promote it." (Book 4, Chapter 2)

    -Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations...

    How many ways can YOU count... that we are missing Mr. Smith's message?

    Posted by ttr at 09/24/2008 @ 3:38pm

14. Just imagine if 7 Million home mortgages averaging $100,000 each were dissolved by a bail out of the people; (most of whom unknowingly entered into an agreement with banks who DID know the risk but also knew that the government would BAIL THEM OUT as we always have in the past.) How much money do you think would be freed up in our nation's families to flow back into our economy in the form of services and goods? It would make tax-cuts look like monopoly money.

    Where are the Congressional Democrats folks, you know those of you who are so thrilled to pin this on the GOP. They're applauding Bush's support of the bailout....

    Oh, hey, did you see Barney Franks and Chris Dodd and the House Leadership on CSPAN recommend directly bailing out the citizens a few minutes ago?!

    Haha, just kidding. They didn't do that.

    Posted by freiheit1 at 09/24/2008 @ 3:55pm

15. Posted by ttr at 09/24/2008 @ 3:38pm

    Well said. I wonder if Adam Smith would approve of governmental abuse of fractional reserve banking?

    Nah, just kidding again. :-)

    Posted by freiheit1 at 09/24/2008 @ 3:59pm