Giving a pass to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for her failure to cajole enough Democrats to vote for the bailout agreement, Newsweek's Daniel Gross blamed the minority Republican conference, accepting without skepticism the argument that a partisan speech by the San Francisco Democrat caused some Republicans to vote "nay" out of spite alone:
Was the bailout bill killed by malice or by incompetence? It's hard to argue against incompetence, since it has been so rampant, especially on the Republican side of things in Washington. The congressional leadership and the White House clearly lacked the heft-or the energy-to whip recalcitrant members into line.
[...]
Story Continues Below Ad ↓Sure, the bill could have passed if more Democrats had voted for it. But Speaker Nancy Pelosi and co. were able to bring along 60 percent of their caucus. Why did so many House Republicans bail? Some say it's because Pelosi hurt their feelings by pointing out that Republicans were in charge when things went to hell. It also could be that a lot of them got religious on fiscal matters. (Of course, having approved an expansion of Medicare, massive increases in all sorts of spending, and huge tax cuts that led to the addition of trillions of dollars in public debt, this is a strange moment to stand on principle.)
Obviously, Republicans were motivated in no small part by political calculations-short- and long-term. But it's really hard to figure out what those calculations might be.
[...]
In the meantime, the chaos they've created by coming to the table and then throwing a fit works to their disadvantage.
So Gross accused Republicans of pettiness and incompetence, but failed to point blame at the majority Democrats or ask the natural questions that might arise from accepting the notion that Republicans voted no to spite Pelosi.
Given that Pelosi's speech was chock full of partisan red meat, which it was, why did it fail to corral more than 60 percent of her caucus? If the bailout package is the most important legislative issue of the congressional session, shouldn't Pelosi have been able to command a higher percentage of her caucus behind the agreement?
Doesn't a failure to whip her caucus in line show a failure of Pelosi's leadership? If she knew her caucus was only 60 percent behind her -- and she darn well should have given her experience as a former party whip -- why did she purposely choose inflammatory language in her speech arguing for passage of the bill and then move forward with the vote even as she knew she wouldn't have enough votes behind her?
These are all questions a fair and balanced journalist would have considered. But fairness and balance have a pesky habit of running counter to the mission of electing Barack Obama and re-electing a liberal Democratic Congress.
—Ken Shepherd is Managing Editor of NewsBusters
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Comments Policy
The Heros of Main Street
September 30, 2008 - 09:52 ET by c5thenThat's what the house republicans who voted against this monstrosity will be known as if they continue to vote their convictions and listen to their constituents.
Newsweek = Pravda, need I
September 30, 2008 - 10:16 ET by ForeverOnTheRightNewsweek = Pravda, need I say more?
This mess can be traced to the ball that started all this, Community Reinvestment Act that was passed under President Clinton, aka Slick Willy.
http://www.americant...
First, IMO, the GOP should
September 30, 2008 - 10:03 ET by dscottFirst, IMO, the GOP should take CREDIT for the defeat of the Bail Out, they should wear it like a badge of honor. They should crow to the horrified MSM that they did what their constituents told them to do as a representive in this Republic.
They should then point out that Pelosi and the rest of the Dems who voted for the porked up bail out were the creators of the mess to be cleaned up. Pelosi and the Dems DO NOT REPRESENT main stream America. Another poster did a nice job on listing all the opportunities Pelosi and the Dems had to avoid the crisis. That albatross should be hung on their necks from here to election day.
At this point they should be offering an alternative to the effect of what I have put forward on other threads:
As long as the “Bail out” does not address the problems that created the mess it will happen again and worse next time.
These points are non-negotiable:
1. Repeal the Community Re-investment Act (1977), anti-Redlining legislation and all of its subsequent modifying acts to embellish those laws for so called Affordable Housing. There are apartments available to rent, no one is being economically disadvantaged due to this style of living.
2. NO taxpayer funds will be used to stop property foreclosures.
3. NO taxpayer funds will be used to stop defaults on student loans, credit cards and auto loans.
4. NO loan write downs.
5. NO tax free exemptions from income for walking away from debit.
If you really want show legitimacy, then force the immediate resignations from office of Senator Dodd and Rep. Frank for the part they played in refusing to reform the system in 2005 to head off the crisis. If they won’t resign, then impeach them. There must be accountability, heads must roll.
The Real Plan, the one that will work:
“Insure” the existing mortgages with the full faith and credit of the US instead of buying the mortgages at a discount. Insuring the mortgages at their full original value would solve the CDO issue since their values were based on the original mortgage value. The real issue is the broader market whose entire value is based on those mortgages. Insuring the mortgages would restore their value and indirectly ALL the financial instruments based upon them with minimal cost. Secondly change the accounting valuation method to something more reasonable and flexible than "Marked to Market"
What this plan would not do, it would not reduce anyone’s mortgage payment or principal thus allowing them to skate on their financial responsibility which is what got us here in the first place. So what would happen in essence is a bank could foreclose on a defaulted mortgage (not lose money) and then kick out the people who weren’t paying their bill so that the house would be put on the market. Those people kicked out would have to go rent an apartment (which is where they came from in the first place). The Banks at that point can fire sale the foreclosed house and the government would make up the loss between the outstanding mortgage balance and lower sale price if any. New home owners with good credit can then purchase a house at a discount and banks can then give them a mortgage with responsible down payment terms which will not be defaulted upon.
In addition, points 3, 4, 8 & 9 below that equally apply to both alternatives.
The alternative of the current plan with modifications:
1. Taxpayers will purchase the toxic loans at current market value (cash as last resort).
2. Abolish Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, trade marketable good loans (at current market value) to firms for toxic loans.
3. Every Senator or Rep. on the banking and commerce committees who opposed the reforms of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in 2003, 2005 and 2006 MUST RESIGN IMMEDIATELY or be impeached. This point is not negotiable, millions of Americans are out of work because of your foolishness, it’s time you feel their pain.
4. Every CEO, CFO and Board of Directors of the firms with toxic loans to be swapped or purchased must RESIGN IMMEDIATELY or withhold the bailout from their company. This point is not negotiable for reasons stated above and due to incompetence.
5. Certain loans will NOT be purchased: Those loans made to illegal immigrants, i.e. not legally residing in the US. If your company folds because you flaunted the Laws of the US, you and all of those who conspired with you are not entitled to our money in any form.
6. Set up the Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC) to handle the toxic loans, they will have the power to sell, renegotiate, foreclose, rent or bulldoze the property based on the most optimum target value that can be reasonably achieved over say a 5 year period.
7. All actions by the RTC will have immunity from the Bankruptcy Courts, their word is final.
8. The caveat is mortgage money for new construction must be limited by a 20% down requirement, that way the housing inventory can be reduced through attrition, thus unwinding the whole mess without severe dislocations of the market.
9. Finally, no loans will be made to anyone who doesn’t have a down payment for a mortgage to purchase a house, condo, townhome. A $10,000 minimum is required. There will be a sliding scale of interest based upon the credit score and amount of down payment. Those with high credit scores and or high down payments get the lowest interest rate. Those with the least down payment and low credit scores get the highest interest rate to reflect their commensurate default rate. As their equity increases in combination with good payment history, the interest rate should be revised (every two years) to reflect their equity stake based on market value and credit risk.
Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, starving the poor one gallon of ethanol at a time. Fill your tank with E85 and cull a village.
Interesting Proposal
September 30, 2008 - 12:11 ET by Secret Conservativedscott:
I like your ideas about getting us out of this mess by doing away with the very things that got us into it! I, too, believe the GOP should wear the defeat of this bailout like a badge of honor. I am appalled that the MSM lets Nancy Pelosi spew her hate and not take her to task for the fact that she couldn't even muster enough votes from HER OWN PARTY. I am also appalled that NOBODY in Congress or the MSM seems to be able to clearly communicate to the American people what has happened and what needs to be done about it - including McCain and Obama. This says to me that they do not understand it, and therefore are the LAST people who should be cleaning it up.
As someone who is currently unemployed because of a bank failure because of this subprime junk, I wholly support any plan that will restore SANITY to the credit markets. We saw this coming for 15 YEARS (yes, since the Clinton administration) when the government required the lenders to make credit decisions that were against the long-term interests of both the borrower and the lender. Add low interest rates, Wall Street selling the same loan pools over and over again in various forms, the SOX mark-to-market requirements and you see how we got here.
I'm sorry to see you in
September 30, 2008 - 12:59 ET by dscottI'm sorry to see you in this situation and unfortunately until the self serving Dems in congress stop their PC nonsense with the bail out and the drilling issue, there will be more unemployment. btw-the drilling ban expires today! however, until the States get a share of the royalties, there is no incentive for them to push the Interior Department to do so. Lowering the price of gasoline back down to less than $2/gallon will jump start the economy more cheaply and quickly than any government rebate even the $500 or $1000 one proposed by the vote buyer Obama.
In the meantime, if you are not a home owner, i.e. a renter, you should consider moving to a metro area of lower unemployment. http://www.bls.gov/web/laummtrk.htm Don't count on government to give you a job, or create one, and unemployment compensation is only a short term treading of water, I know because I've been there. Look at the link, as of September 30th, the top has areas of unemployment of less than 4% whereas the bottom has unemployment in El Centro, CA at 24.7%!
1
Sioux Falls, SD Metropolitan Statistical Area
2.6
2
Bismarck, ND Metropolitan Statistical Area
2.8
2
Morgantown, WV Metropolitan Statistical Area
2.8
2
Rapid City, SD Metropolitan Statistical Area
2.8
5
Logan, UT-ID Metropolitan Statistical Area
2.9
6
Lincoln, NE Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.0
7
Fargo, ND-MN Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.1
7
Idaho Falls, ID Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.1
7
Midland, TX Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.1
10
Billings, MT Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.2
10
Casper, WY Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.2
10
Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, LA Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.2
13
Ames, IA Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.4
13
Charleston, WV Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.4
13
Iowa City, IA Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.4
16
Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR-MO Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.5
16
Lafayette, LA Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.5
18
Lawton, OK Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.6
18
Madison, WI Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.6
18
Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.6
18
Portland-South Portland-Biddeford, ME Metropolitan NECTA
3.6
18
Provo-Orem, UT Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.6
23
Missoula, MT Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.7
23
Odessa, TX Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.7
23
Portsmouth, NH-ME Metropolitan NECTA
3.7
26
Amarillo, TX Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.8
26
Great Falls, MT Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.8
26
Oklahoma City, OK Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.8
26
Salt Lake City, UT Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.8
26
Tulsa, OK Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.8
31
Burlington-South Burlington, VT Metropolitan NECTA
3.9
31
Honolulu, HI Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.9
31
Huntsville, AL Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.9
31
Sioux City, IA-NE-SD Metropolitan Statistical Area
3.9
The bottom area of high unemployment:
344
Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL Metropolitan Statistical Area
9.0
344
Sumter, SC Metropolitan Statistical Area
9.0
346
Kankakee-Bradley, IL Metropolitan Statistical Area
9.1
346
Muskegon-Norton Shores, MI Metropolitan Statistical Area
9.1
348
Jackson, MI Metropolitan Statistical Area
9.2
348
Longview, WA Metropolitan Statistical Area
9.2
348
Port St. Lucie, FL Metropolitan Statistical Area
9.2
348
Punta Gorda, FL Metropolitan Statistical Area
9.2
348
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area
9.2
353
Bakersfield, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area
9.5
353
Hanford-Corcoran, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area
9.5
353
Rockford, IL Metropolitan Statistical Area
9.5
356
Redding, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area
9.6
357
Fresno, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area
9.7
358
Rocky Mount, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area
9.9
359
Monroe, MI Metropolitan Statistical Area
10.0
359
Sebastian-Vero Beach, FL Metropolitan Statistical Area
10.0
361
Stockton, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area
10.2
362
Palm Coast, FL Metropolitan Statistical Area
10.3
363
Flint, MI Metropolitan Statistical Area
10.5
364
Modesto, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area
10.6
364
Visalia-Porterville, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area
10.6
366
Merced, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area
11.2
366
Yuba City, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area
11.2
368
Yuma, AZ Metropolitan Statistical Area
22.7
369
El Centro, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area
24.7
Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, starving the poor one gallon of ethanol at a time. Fill your tank with E85 and cull a village.
Thanks!
September 30, 2008 - 17:56 ET by IndigoChillI completely agree. And major kudos for putting the time and energy into such a well thought-out and detailed diagnosis and prescription. Thanks for that!
Why aren't republicans
September 30, 2008 - 10:06 ET by xyzzypoofsWhy aren't Republicans out advertising the fact that they stopped the Democrats from taking over the country and declaring communism to be the law of the land yesterday? Quit being wimps! Quit "reaching out across the aisle" and start acting like men! (and women!)
Exactly
September 30, 2008 - 10:09 ET by CapitalismRulesHeadline should read: "American People: No DEAL" By line should read: Republicans realize will of American people and vote accordingly. Photo should be of cheering protesters who did not want this.
But, um, I have a little feeling you won't find that anywhere.
Alice in Wonderland
September 30, 2008 - 10:14 ET by Red JeepBush’s fault. Must be Representative Maurice Hinchey, (D) New York, is one of those Democrats facing voter heat. He said he could not vote for the bill claiming the bailout bill was the Bush Administration’s deal and lacked oversight. See, Bush’s fault.
Hinchey further explained that passage of the 1999 Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act was the main cause for the the subprime mortgage crisis. Wonder who was the president then? Wonder who voted for it? Alice in Wonderland time.
allow me to love
September 30, 2008 - 10:18 ET by JIMMY1660allow me to love America
chris dodd, along with the freak, barney frank, have been overseeing the banking for years. and here we are.
and yet its someone elses fault.
john Mccain needs to tell the story, stand up for Americans.
Curious timing
September 30, 2008 - 10:32 ET by tbbaxterIs it mere coincidence that this crisis came to a head in an election year? I mean, call me suspicious, even call me paranoid (just don't call me a Democrat), but who stands to gain from this liberal-led panic? Obama. How did we get in this mess in the first place? Democrats. Who loses? The American people. What a win-win situation for the Democrats! They have played us like a fiddle: tank the economy, blame the Republicans, sweep into power in November and, in January, 2009, start dismantling our Republic piece by sacred piece and slowly turn us into just another socialist country with Obama as the czar, the dictator, the Dear Leader, the king - the false "messiah."
There is video of the Dims
September 30, 2008 - 10:51 ET by oldArmyThere is video of the Dims defending all of these fraudulent mortgages from Freddie Mac over on Rush's website. Amazing to me how they get away with blaming all this on Bush and the Republicans.....when there is proof like this out there to the contrary. They even claimed Republicans were going after Franklin Raines because of politics. Unbelievable!!!!
Are you surprised?
September 30, 2008 - 12:26 ET by Mary Louise TurnerAre you surprised, ladies and gentlemen? Newsweek, the New York Times and other MSM outlets are doing exactly what I felt they would do...blame the GOP for the bailout flop. This is yet another stupid media trick, designed to protect anyone associated with the Democratic Party.
How many Dem's on Barney Franks comitte voted No?
September 30, 2008 - 12:27 ET by buzzbeeAll 12 Democrat Members of Barney Franks comittee voted no. yeah, the Republicans are to blame.
Drill here, Drill Now!
Daniel the Math Major
September 30, 2008 - 12:29 ET by ferv888Daniel Gross, is just that, a Gross bonehead who cannot add up anything that makes sense, other than his bias.
The DIMOCRATS have enough votes by themselves to get this done. The entire Black Caucus voted against this bill, not one of them voted yea. Who's at fault again?
What a crock, in many ways, I hope the hopeless get their way, except it will really hurt the rest of those who work for a living and make a decent buck. I did not win the lottery in life, but worked for it. Now someone wants to take and give. Give your own damn money, I'll give mine to whom I choose.
FERV888
40 % of dems voted against it
September 30, 2008 - 13:56 ET by wizardjrSo how is this the GOP's fault when 40% of the Dims voted against it?
McCain/A Trillion dollars at the Treasury's disposal.
September 30, 2008 - 14:04 ET by bigtimerSpeaking of the bail-out...McCain said we don't need congressional approval for the bail-out, the treasury has a trillion dollars they can use!!!
So why are you in congress even touching your hands on this?
EH?
I really want answers!
No, I hope the American people demand them!
You in govt. aided and abetted in this mess...keep your sticky fingers out of it NOW!
Watch the video!!
"America isn't the problem...America is the solution." ~ Rush Limbaugh
Pelosi has the blues...
September 30, 2008 - 15:43 ET by Tom in NCThe NO-BAIL-OUT Blues, she is beside herself that we the American people are not willing to take a bite of this sh*t sandwich she is trying to feed us. She and the majority of democrats along with the MSM are trying to hide their cupability in this mess, but the evidence is there and I salute the House members both Republicans and Democrats that sent this bail-out down in flames
NANCY "STRETCH' PELOSI...
September 30, 2008 - 16:31 ET by danybhoyI can't believe what I am about to type, I HOPE REALLY HOPE THAT CINDY SHEEHAN BEATS "STRETCH" PELOSI. I want to see that trainwreck beat out this anti-American jerk. That is 1 storyline I get to see on Nov4.
Yeah, I did not forget the old "be carefull what you wish for" line, I'll take my chances.
"...it's still We The People, Right?" Megadeth
dany... Yeah, same
September 30, 2008 - 18:17 ET by bigtimerdany...
Yeah, same thoughts... I posted about Sheehan/Pelosi somewhere else too just a bit ago.
We could never be so lucky.
Could you see what fun that would be msm wise!!!!
"America isn't the problem...America is the solution." ~ Rush Limbaugh