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Posted on Friday 3 October 2008


House Approves $700B Financial Rescue Package
President Bush Signs Bill Into Law Same Afternoon

In a dramatic reversal, the House today approved by a comfortable margin a $700 billion financial rescue package that will bring the greatest intervention of the federal government into the private marketplace since the Great Depression, attempting to prevent the economy from sliding into a deep recession. Just four days after the bill’s initial demise sparked a free fall on Wall Street, the House approved the legislation 263-171. At 1:23 p.m., the measure cleared a majority of votes, and the chamber broke out in applause.

After initially rejecting the bill by a 2-to-1 margin, House Republicans mustered 91 votes in favor of it on the second try, with 172 Democrats supporting its passage. One hundred eight Republicans and 63 Democrats voted against the bill. The Senate approved the package Wednesday. "It is a difficult vote. It is a vote we must win for the American people," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said, closing out 2 1/2 hours of debate.

President Bush signed the bill into law this afternoon shortly before heading to St. Louis for a political fundraising event, to be followed by a weekend stay at his Texas ranch, the White House said. The signing ended the bill’s 15-day odyssey through the legislative process, a journey that roiled the financial markets and focused the presidential campaign debate on the economy…
The economy is already in a recession – as it probably should be. I have no real idea what I think about the bailout at this point. And there’s no way to predict where things are headed. My parents were children when the Great Depression hit. There were hard times around, particularly in my Dad’s family – immigrant coal miners in an area where the mines were closed. I always wondered if people then knew what was happening to them at the time it was happening. I don’t think so, because the question always fell flat. It feels like there’s something we should feel now – two wars, Arab Terrorists plotting attacks, eight years of terrible government, lines for gasoline, and now a collapse of the Stock Market with a gigantic government intervention that might help, or might break the Bank altogether.

And  then there’s the Presidential Campaign. Yesterday, McCain voted for the bailout asked for by the Republican President. I just heard McCain’s running mate talking about the Democrats being big spenders because they voted for the bailout. She, Sarah Palin, was frustrated with her interviews with Katie Couric because she was asked basic Civics questions rather than questions that would let her rant about Obama [Civics questions she couldn’t answer]. Very bizarre.

 

So tomorrow, we have the Jasper Georgia Annual Marble Festival. The parade’s at 10:00 AM. All the Fire Trucks and Tow Trucks will be washed and shiny. The Shriners will ride their funny cars in circles. And there will be an endless train of queens starting with babies all the way up through high school. – all throwing candy. The Christian Puppets will be there, as will all the dignitaries in borrowed new convertibles. The Park is covered with open air tents for the craft booths. And we just got back from the opening of the Art Exhibit – really nice.

Is this how it’s supposed to feel when there’s a Depression?

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