Lawmakers from both parties in House, Senate say they have bailout deal

[Wretched Excess]

the question is, "do they really have the votes to get it passed"?

Congress Reaches Fundamental Deal on Bailout

WASHINGTON —
Key lawmakers have reported an agreement in principle on a bailout of the financial industry designed to avert a deeper economic crisis.

Emerging from a two-hour negotiating session, Sen. Chris Dodd said, "We are very confident that we can act expeditiously."

Sen. Bob Bennett, a Utah Republican, told reporters: "I now expect that we will indeed hvae a plan that can pass the House, pass the Senate (and) be signed by the president." Dodd is a Connecticut Democrat who heads the Senate Banking Committee.

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on edit : LOL!  the misspelling is the fault of the AP, not me.

[Chris_]

Why do I feel a BOHICA moment coming on?

[Wretched Excess]

now let's watch the MSM spin this into some sort of "this is the end for john mccain" story.

[Wretched Excess]

completely different sounding headline at abcnews.

SEN. DODD: DEMOCRATS, REPUBLICANS REACH 'FUNDAMENTAL AGREEMENT ON SET OF PRINCIPLES' FOR BAILOUT PLAN

Congressional negotiators emerged today and announced they had reached a deal in principal on President Bush's $700 billion proposal to buy up a mountain of Wall Street debt that has threatened to torpedo the U.S. economy.
Bush delivers an urgent message to the nation regarding the $700B bailout plan.

Led by Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., nine members of the House and Senate announced that the deal was struck on four key items that would form the framework for the agreement the Bush administration has argued was needed immediately.

Dodd told reporters they had reached a" fundamental agreement on a set of principals."

The four Republicans and five Democrats said the package will include an oversight board to monitor the bailout, protection for taxpayers, and a cap on the compensation for executives of companies whose debt will be purchased by the federal government.

A source told ABC News that there was a problem resolving the issue of how to help homeowners facing foreclosure. Democrats want to re-write bankruptcy laws to enable judges to re-negotiate mortgages; Republicans do not.

the rewriting of bankruptcy laws is a MAJOR snag.  they don't have squat if they don't have an agreement on that.

[Happy Fun Ball]

Does it contain that oil shale ban?

[Chris_]

completely different sounding headline at abcnews.

SEN. DODD: DEMOCRATS, REPUBLICANS REACH 'FUNDAMENTAL AGREEMENT ON SET OF PRINCIPLES' FOR BAILOUT PLAN

If the "principles" are agreeable to the likes of Chris Dodd - who, if real justice were to be done for this debacle, should probably be wearing an orange jumpsuit about now - then I KNOW we have a BOHICA moment coming soon.

[Wretched Excess]

Does it contain that oil shale ban?

that was snuck in to the continuing budget resolution, I believe, not the rescue bill.

[Happy Fun Ball]

Does it contain that oil shale ban?

that was snuck in to the continuing budget resolution, I believe, not the rescue bill.

Oh ok (that doesn't make it ok of course). I thought it was all part of the same thing. It seemed like the only business they were working on these past couple of days was this bill.

[Wretched Excess]

CNN repeats the "set of principles" line . . . . I'm not sure what they have.  are they sending it to paulson, or
to the president?  but it hasn't passed yet.

I wonder if the congressional leadership of both parties made this announcement prematurely just to blow up
the presidential candidates, who are on their way to washington to "save the day".  there is not a more jealous,
or thinner skinned creature on this planet than a US congressman, and don't you think for a second that it makes
a difference if the guy that is about to steal your thunder is your own party's presidential candidate.

Congress: We have deal
Lawmakers agree on principles to send to Bush - say plan to protect taxpayers and ensure oversight.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Lawmakers have reached a bipartisan deal on the $700 billion financial bailout plan being pushed by the Bush administration.

Both parties and both houses agreed Thursday to a set of principles on revisions to the rescue plan, which calls for the Treasury Department to buy up bad mortgage securities from banks in an effort to get them to lend again.

The deal will help homeowners, curb executive pay packages at participating firms and provide oversight of Treasury's actions, said Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., a key architect of the congressional effort. He did not provide details but said lawmakers will sit down with Treasury officials to discuss it.

"We've reached a fundamental agreement on a set of principles, one, for taxpayers, which is tremendously important," Dodd said.

Americans should "legitimately feel better about the overall approach," said Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., who heads the House Financial Services Committee.

More

[Wretched Excess]

Does it contain that oil shale ban?

that was snuck in to the continuing budget resolution, I believe, not the rescue bill.

Oh ok (that doesn't make it ok of course). I thought it was all part of the same thing. It seemed like the only business they were working on these past couple of days was this bill.

it was, which is why spineless harry reid sneaking it into the CR was so slimy.  even for him.

[DumbAss Tanker]

Funny, since the Dems (and especially the Dems involved with the banking industry and credit card industry havens like Biden, Clinton, Schumer, Dodd, and Frank) are every bit as much proponents of the current bankruptcy laws as any Republicans.

[Wretched Excess]

Funny, since the Dems (and especially the Dems involved with the banking industry and credit card industry havens like Biden, Clinton, Schumer, Dodd, and Frank) are every bit as much proponents of the current bankruptcy laws as any Republicans.

as I understand it, this is the same outrageous bill they have been talking about for a year;  the one that allows bankruptcy judges to rewrite mortgage terms on the spot.

[Chris_]

Funny, since the Dems (and especially the Dems involved with the banking industry and credit card industry havens like Biden, Clinton, Schumer, Dodd, and Frank) are every bit as much proponents of the current bankruptcy laws as any Republicans.

as I understand it, this is the same outrageous bill they have been talking about for a year;  the one that allows bankruptcy judges to rewrite mortgage terms on the spot.

Talk about throwing a wrench into the principle of being responsible for the agreements you make... 

[Wretched Excess]

they don't have a bill.  they have agreement in principle on 3 out of 4 areas of conflict.  hell, we knew that from interviews with various presidential spokesmen and congressional leaders before they ever had the first meeting.

[Wretched Excess]

it doesn't sound like they have the votes.  and without the votes, there isn't a "deal".  thing thing is taking more
turns than a drunken taxi driver.

House GOP: We have leverage on bailout

House Republicans say they have significant leverage on the revamped bailout package, claiming that Democrats will scramble for votes unless they make changes to it.

Republicans in the lower chamber are balking at the bailout package, saying that Democrats will be solely responsible for the ramifications of what they see as a flawed compromise.

Reps. Eric Cantor (R-Va.) and Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) are leading an effort by House Republicans to circulate the set of principles to their colleagues and like-minded Democrats, according to a senior Republican.

Asked whether the effort comes too late, the GOP official said the votes would be leverage enough to have the principles considered by congressional negotiators.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has indicated that a bill will not be brought to the floor without broad Republican support.

More

[Wretched Excess]

they never had a deal.  there are quite a few key individuals in both parties that aren't aboard, including house republicans.  regardless of how this turns out now, obama is going to have to rewrite his stump speech where he blames the entire thing on george bush.  dem complicity in the persons of chris dodd and barney frank is coming to light, and any failure to find a fix will fall at the feet of the dem congressional leadership as well as the administration.

[Wretched Excess]

statement from the mccain campaign, from NRO:

To address our current financial crisis, John McCain suspended his campaign and returned to Washington, D.C., today to help build a bipartisan consensus for a proposal that would protect the American taxpayer. 

Despite today's news reports, there never existed a "deal," but merely a proposal offered by a small, select group of Members of Congress. As of right now, there exists only a series of principles, including greater oversight and measures to address CEO pay. However, these principles do not enjoy a consensus in Congress.

At today's cabinet meeting, John McCain did not attack any proposal or endorse any plan. John McCain simply urged that for any proposal to enjoy the confidence of the American people, stressing that all sides would have to cooperate and build a bipartisan consensus for a solution that protects taxpayers.

However, the Democrats allowed Senator Obama to run their side of the meeting. That did not work as the meeting quickly devolved into a contentious shouting match that did not seek to craft a bipartisan solution.

At this moment, the plan that has been put forth by the Administration does not enjoy the confidence of the American people as it will not protect that taxpayers and will sacrifice Main Street in favor of Wall Street.

The bottom line is that as of tonight, there are not enough Republican or Democrat votes for the current plan. However, we are still optimistic that a bipartisan solution will be found. Republicans and Democrats want a deal that will protect the taxpayers.

Tomorrow, John McCain will return to Capitol Hill where he will work with all sides to build a bipartisan solution that protects taxpayers and keeps Americans in their homes.

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