Hill Staffer: "Bailout In Deep, Deep Trouble" (Contrary To What The Talking Head Are Saying)

[kpete]

Bailout in Trouble?

I'll leave the debating of its merits and flaws to others. But a Hill staffer friend writes today to say the proposed administration bailout plan or variations thereof is in far more trouble on the Hill than media coverage is reflecting.

"I'm telling you, the coverage is not reflecting how much trouble a bailout is in in Congress. The leadership wants it to happen, and maybe it will. But I think (reporters) are getting their stories from leadership, plus the White House, who all want it to happen and play down opposition. But things are ugly, the rank and file - there's just no way they are going to vote for this crap. It just seems to me the bailout is in deep, deep trouble.

"No way it's going to pass," he added in a later email. "It seems impossible. Maybe we will get lucky, we get through the election, the meltdown proceeds apace, and somebody comes up with a save that does not look like - and is not - a bailout for rich Wall Street malefactors. But that is the sine qua non."

http://www.motherjones.com/mojoblog/archives/2008/09/9895_bailout_in_trou.html

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

1. Tee-hee. The politicians don't know which cheek of their sorry asses to cover.

[DJ13]

2. Bush's version may not pass

But that doesnt mean a more limited bailout wont happen in its place.

Several in Congress want a smaller ($150b) bill to give more time for a considered review of what really needs to be done before committing the rest of the money.

[Naturalist]

3. I HOPE

this is the truth.

[ixion]

4. good... I hope it dies quickly

[DCKit]

5. Is this staffer saying our Dem leadership are DINOs?

'Cause it sure sounds like it. I can't even imagine.

Nobody but the Reaganonomic, CONservative, Family Values GOP hardliners could possibly find anything redeeming in the Paulson/Beranake/WH plan so now I'm wondering how and why Pelosi and Reid are said to backing it as-is.

[The Stranger]

6. "The leadership wants it to happen . . . " -- as in the Nancy Pelosi Traitor/Disaster?

[hootinholler]

9. As in the DLC most likely. n/t

[Supersedeas]

26. she'll roll over on oil drilling and on the bailout in less than a week -- leadership?

[JDPriestly]

7. Here's the only reason this thing would pass:

For example, Charles Schumer


Top 5 Industries, 2003-2008
Securities & Investment $1,370,339
Lawyers/Law Firms $1,204,868
Real Estate $751,551
Misc Finance $321,948
Commercial Banks $288,000

http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.php?cid=N00001093

The plan is horrid, but Schumer owes the sponsors favors.

You can check out all the other perpetrators of this fraud of a plan on Open Secrets.

[Duppers]

25. oh crap!

thanks for that catch.

New York folks should be aware and apply pressure. He should know we know.

[notadmblnd]

8. Clinton was on the Daily show last night and he said one of the things that should happen is

a moratorium on foreclosures. He said some other things too but I was in that hazy area between consciousness and sleep and really didn't catch it all. He's going to be on Larry King tonight. We'll have to watch and see what he says again tonight

[nadinbrzezinski]

10. To summarize all he said, 1931 all over

[AntiFascist]

11. Yet the Dow Jones is only down 29 points...

some crisis!

[Duppers]

27. yeah, the markets lag too

I'm waiting for the shoe to drop, when they think it's a done deal.

Told hubby this morning that I can't believe people with money are so dumb.

[HillbillyBob]

12. I say let the greedy bastards go broke.

I have been homeless and near homeless(house was almost worse than being under a bridge, but was at least private.
Why should we let them keep mansions and yachts and golden parachutes at the regular tax payers expense when boosh and bois gave them tax breaks that were larger than most people salary? I feel for those lower that are going to lose their jobs and homes.
They are just the peons in the companies, but you know if we bail out the greedy sobs at the top those same folks will still either be out of work or face severe pay cuts.

[earth mom]

19. Nobody wants a depression but this bailout does nothing but help the greedy mo fos at the top.

The rest of us peons will NOT benefit. And, don't forget we're PAYING FOR IT to begin with. :grr:

Mark my words-this bailout is a ripoff of the majority of this country on a massive scale. :argh:

[AmyCamus]

13. Bush's original bail-out won't happen.

"the proposed administration bailout plan or variations thereof is in far more trouble on the Hill than media coverage is reflecting."

And it shouldn't happen. I agreed with Biden's first comments on this.

[TexasObserver]

14. I do not believe anything more than $100 billion will get approved, and will be limited.

They may give some funds to help some companies in the near term, but they simply are not going to give Bush what he wants. It's over for that bunch.

[Zhade]

15. So our leadership is down with paying off crooks with our money so they can ruin the economy?

FUCK THEM!

[pleah]

16. I hope this is true!

Please let it be true!

[European Socialist]

17. Money will win--but maybe only by one vote--Gotta keep that Democracy

facade alive.

[mhatrw]

18. Were this true, I would put the champaign on ice. n/t

[OakCliffDem]

20. Kick

[erpowers]

21. Media Reporting It

I think the media is actually reporting how in trouble the bailout is in. Since the beginning they have been reporting that this bill is not greatly supported. It has been reported that both Democrats and Republican are against the bill for various reasons. In addition, the media has reported that the bill could fail and it could be the Republicans who bring the bill down. The media has been reporting for days that it was very possible that the bailout might not pass if members of Congress cannot be convinced that it is absolutely necessary.

[AndyA]

22. Any money should go to the American people.

So they can PAY OFF their mortgages. That helps EVERYONE!

The finance companies/banks get their money, and a family now has more money to spend, which will stimulate other areas of the economy as well. It's a win/win.

[izzybeans]

23. Bail Out depositers, fuck the banks.

Otherwise it's just more faux-populist grandstanding.

[bdamomma]

24. I hope this is true.

I do not want to see this passed. this is a scam, pure and simple. we will not get duped into another similar shock and awe.

[Wilber_Stool]

28. Just in from CNN

They have a deal. No details yet.

[Batgirl]

29. I think they're a little bit afraid of the populace at large for the first time.

I think the political and media establishment were caught by surprise at how widespread and intense the anger is.

They don't live out here, they don't know what it feels like to see more and more empty houses in your neighborhood. Or to see your community deteriorate with boarded up businesses, dwindling services, chewed up roads that don't get fixed. They haven't really experienced recurring job loss, dwindling income, driving longer distances to work more hours at jobs that pay less. To tolerate all this and more. (Anecdotal aside: my experiences indicate there are a lot of workers nowadays who have been quietly putting in unpaid hours at their jobs -- we're talking hourly people -- in order to do extra work that used to be done by coworkers that didn't survive the previous layoffs -- and I've heard this scenario from enough different people to reasonably assume it's become commonplace.)

Conditions are such that people are scared, wondering how far we can fall, watching so many of our jobs being exported, hoping the car holds up because there's no money to replace or even repair, wondering at what point we won't be able to afford to drive to our jobs ... and amidst this scenario, we are told that our money must be given to the very forces behind the outsourcing of entire industries, the gutting of our manufacturing base, the very ones who've shown their absolute contempt for working people and who will never be touched by these hard times in the ways the rest of us are experiencing.

For the first time I believe there could be a genuine possibility of it blowing up in their faces.