GOP conservatives present rescue alternative

[Terri]

By ANDREW TAYLOR
Associated Press
September 26, 2008

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A group of conservative Republicans in the House on Thursday proposed a financial rescue package of tax breaks and a new government-sponsored insurance program for mortgage-backed securities as an alternative to President Bush's proposed $700 billion bailout of Wall Street.

Instead of the government buying the toxic mortgage securities, banks, financial firms and other investors holding them would pay premiums to the Treasury to finance the insurance coverage.

The idea is that the insurance would give investors enough confidence to buy the illiquid securities and establish a market for them.

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[Terri]

Btw, House Republicans cannot block a vote for the Paulson plan.

If Pelosi wants it and can whip Democrats into line they can pass it.

[MamaCat]

If Pelosi wants it and can whip Democrats into line they can pass it.

If they pass it in the House, can we block it in the Senate?

[Terri]

Technically, we can.

Remember, it takes 60 votes to bring a bill to a full floor vote. But, I'm not sure we would have 41 senators with the guts to stand up to this one.

[annewi]

Thank God for the House Republicans and McCain working on an alternative that saves the taxpayers billions and uses private capital and Wall Street resources with insurance backup and tax breaks from Congress. The only thing I saw missing in that package is an elimination or deferral of the requirement for "Mark-to-Market" pricing of securities, a requirement that Congress required after the Enron scandel which actually has lead to this meltdown. The issue is that the market can not come up with a value for these securities currently so they essentially have to report them as worthless which makes these firms essentially bankrupt.

House Republicans, keep up the good work trying to save the taxpayers from this huge debt which in the long run will hurt all Americans and stifle growth in our economy!

I urge Democrats to support this lower priced alternative and quit the partisan politics.

[Genea]

I understand that not bailing them out would cause a deep recession, but bailing them out...we don't know what's going to happen. Also, where do we draw the line. How can we (the govt) put the ntl debt in worse shape than it's already in? We are BROKE. You shouldn't spend what you don't have, just like those who bought homes they couldn't afford, see what's happening there. Can't we learn by mistakes instead of repeating them.

What happened to capitalism??? We are entering communism/socialism.

[gafisher]

Can't we learn by mistakes instead of repeating them.

We must, but in this case the "mistake" is akin to taking an overdose of drugs -- without the paramedics we might not survive it. Once our condition is stabilized, then we'll have to answer for our stupidity, and some of the "cure" will have to involve constraints to keep us from doing it again, as the McCain / Republican "Conservative Alternative" (a rescue, not a bailout) does.

[Genea]

gafisher

I totally agree that the rescue plan is much better than the bailout. God be with us!

[ONTIME]

This plan at least puts the money in a safe place where groups like ACORN are not allowed to be benefited by it. The idea being like any biz association putting up money to pay for rainy day problems and member information is a normal way of doing biz. The public will pay for it indirectly as a fee in the midst of a loan but it can be identified and tracked and quite possibly deducted as a regular expense during tax season by the person or business recieving the loan.

This merry band of smiling crooks called Democrats just wanted the public or taxpayers to pony up 700 billion bucks, no questions asked on a "trust me" basis, a brazen move but now one that implicates them as participating in collusion, complicity and the intent to commit tax fraud. How fitting.......

[Charles Moeller]

How about exposing congress as the entity that wanted to ease the qualifications of borrowers so "everyone could be a homeowner."

Some, like Dodd, Obama, and H. Clinton have benefited, in the form of campaign contributions from such meddling. In 2005, S.190, cosponsored by McCaine, was stifled by those Democrats. That legislation would have curbed this current financial crisis.