President Bush Shilling for Obama: Asks Congress for Remainder of Bailout
Why make President-elect Barack Hussein Obama ask Congress for the last $350 billion of the Troubled Assets Relief Program (also known as Foundation of Socialism in the United States Act) even though he’s the one who wants it? President Bush should do his dirty work for him. Oh wait, he has.
President Bush on Monday formally asked Congress for the second half of the $700 billion Wall Street bailout package at the behest of President-elect Barack Obama as Democratic lawmakers said they have more faith in the incoming administration to spend the money wisely.
The move came as Mr. Obama’s top economic adviser, Lawrence H. Summers, seeking to overcome deep skepticism on Capitol Hill, promised new aid to homeowners and tighter controls on banks if Congress approves use of the remaining $350 billion from the Treasury Department’s Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP.
Thankfully some Republicans are trying to do their part to delay Bush/Obama’s request:
Republicans on the House Financial Services Committee urged Democratic Chairman Barney Frank on Monday night “in the strongest possible terms” to postpone a debate and vote to release the second half of the $700 billion financial bailout package.
“Karl Marx famously observed that history repeats itself, first as tragedy and then as farce,” GOP lawmakers said in a letter to Frank. “And it appears this Congress is trying to prove Marx correct. The original TARP was considered and enacted in a panicked rush to judgment. We are again moving far too quickly in considering whether to approve the expenditure of hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars.”
Republicans in both chambers are skeptical about the second half of the bailout money, particularly because they think the recent use of some funding to bail out the auto industry signaled that the money is heading toward those with political clout rather than struggling financial institutions.
House Republican Leader John Boehner said it would be “irresponsible” of Congress to release any more money. George Rep. Tom Price, chairman of the Republican Study Committee, said in a written statement that the request for the funding is “troubling and disappointing.”
It’s doubtful but hopefully Republicans can muster enough opposition to, at a minimum, delay the request for a while.
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