Well, everyone in Washington was just deflated after the “Emergency Economic Stabilization” bill failed in the U. S. House. But fortunately, we have the Senate to come up with the most obvious solution to the impasse: more spending!
The new bill — much bigger and more costly than the original for its addition of tax breaks — has been crafted in a way to overcome objections in a resistant House.
What’s new, since a sharply divided House voted 228-205 to scuttle the first plan on Monday:
— A dramatically higher cap on insurance that the federal government provides for individual bank depositors – lifting Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. protection to $250,000 per account.
— Also: Tax breaks for individuals and businesses alike, including relief for more than 20 million middle-income taxpayers subjected to an Alternative Minimum Tax that boosts their tax bills.
How much in tax breaks, you ask? A pittance: $150 billion. Because that’s what Americans were really concerned about — that the government wasn’t spending enough.
The more I read, the more I’m swayed that this bailout plan isn’t such a great idea.
$250,000 in savings accounts??? Who has that?
Who qualifies for alternate minimum tax?
Like a previous post by the Mouse…
Can you borrow your way out of a debt crisis? Of course not. It’s like an alcoholic drinking his way to sobriety. It’s ludicrous.
When are we just going to face the reality of being overspent, highly in debt, getting rid of the Fed. Reserve?
Taken directly from the Senate website:
Measure Number: H.R. 1424
Title: Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act of 2007
Measure Title: A bill to provide authority for the Federal Government to purchase and insure certain types of troubled assets for the purposes of providing stability to and preventing disruption in the economy and financial system and protecting taxpayers, to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide incentives for energy production and conservation, to extend certain expiring provisions, to provide individual income tax relief, and for other purposes.
Now… does anyone but me think it’s odd that a bill, originally proposed to “provide stability to and preventing disruption in the economy and financial system and protesting taxpayers” would be not have anything about economic stability in the title? Is there anyone out there who is at all concerned about the dollar amount being spent on “other purposes?”
If this passes, and I pray to God it doesn’t, it will be an unmitigated disaster of epic proportions. I urge everyone to contract House members and let your feelings be known. To continue my analogy, if we stop drinking(borrowing) now, we will have a hangover for sure, but if we keep drinking (borrowing) we will end up at the morgue. We can’t afford this bail out, and the big banks don’t deserve it.
Check out the 150 billion of pork added to this bill. 192 million goes to out-of-the-country rum producers. Money also going to a company that makes childrens wooden arrows. I’m going to look for a link to the proposed “bailout”.
The senate folks did add a lot of pork to this bill, as Mazr notes. About 5 or 6 things//waiting for Mazr to find the list. So much for John McCain rejecting pork barrel spending as President (he voted for it in the Senate).
Anyway, a democrat from Oregon has a great idea – http://www.truthout.org/100208K
DeFazio – no $700 billion.
Anyone on the economics of this? Would it work?
I talked about it with, and emailed it to LaHood’s son in law today, he’s a friend. Hope he forwards it to Ray!
Cara — I know you’re a diehard Democrat, and that’s your prerogative. But come on:
You know that Obama also voted for this bill, and that Obama has also spoken against pork-barrel spending, and has sworn off earmarks as of late. You can’t seriously castigate McCain and say Obama is different on this issue and expect anyone to believe you for a second.
Cara…I also heard about this DeFazio plan. I would be curious if it’s feasible. This pricetag is getting waaaay out of hand.
Here’s all I could find so far:
“Also included were more obscure terms extending tax breaks for motor-sports racing tracks, makers of wooden arrows for children, and the rum excise tax for Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
The tax breaks added to the Senate bill would cost the Treasury an estimated $110 billion over 10 years, according to Congress’ Joint Committee on Taxation.”
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/329/story/53350.html
The bill allows for the bailing out of foreign financial institutions. Any foreign financial institution with a subsidiary in the US can transfer their failing assets from abroad to the US institutions and then “sell” them to the Treasury. An Amendment was introduced that stated that if the under performing assets weren’t on the books as of Sept. 20, they could not be taken by the Treasury. The Amendment was rejected!!
From the bill:
SEC. 101. PURCHASES OF TROUBLED ASSETS.OFFICES; AUTHORITY.—
(1) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary is authorized to establish a troubled asset relief program (or‘‘TARP’’) to purchase, and to make and fund commitments to purchase, troubled assets from any financial institution, on such terms and conditions as are determined by the Secretary, and in accordance with this Act and the policies and procedures developed and published by the Secretary.
SEC. 112. COORDINATION WITH FOREIGN AUTHORITIES AND CENTRAL BANKS.
The Secretary shall coordinate, as appropriate, with foreign financial authorities and central banks to work toward the establishment of similar programs by such authorities and central banks. To the extent that such foreign financial authorities or banks hold troubled assets as a result of extending financing to financial institutions that have failed or defaulted on such financing, such troubled assets qualify for purchase under section 101.
Martha — I think the reason is that revenue bills have to originate in the House. So the Senate took an unrelated, but passed, House bill and passed an amendment to it that replaced the entire bill. It’s kind of an end-run around the legislative process. So we have a revenue bill now that’s originating in the Senate.