No other choice

By Published by The Editorial Board

Published: September 30, 2008

Congress has to act. It has to come up with a way to ensure that the American economy continues to function.

It has to pass a bailout bill — and it appears time is running out.

On Monday, the House of Representatives narrowly defeated the legislation, 228-205. That led the Dow Jones Industrial Average to suffer a record drop of 777 points.

By opposing the bailout, Republicans voted against their president and Democrats voted against their leadership. The defeated bill was part of an effort to get all sides to reach an agreement that most congressmen could support. It still failed.

“I think that we need to renew our efforts to find a solution that Congress can support,” Republican leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, was quoted by The Associated Press.

U.S. Rep. Virgil Goode, R-5th, one of those who voted against the bill, said in a prepared statement, “I do not feel that the taxpayers of the United States should be the funders of this legislation. Alternative avenues that would have provided capital for banks without involving an appropriation from the taxpayers were far preferable, in my opinion.”

Goode also worried that taxpayer dollars “could be used for payments directly or indirectly to foreign banks” and that the bailout doesn’t fix the problem of making what he called “politically correct” loans to people who cannot repay them.

With 228 legislators voting against this bill, it wouldn’t be a surprise if each one of them had their own distinct reason to vote no. But if the financial markets are in bad shape, the problems on Wall Street will hit Main Street. Then where will we be?

Congressional leaders must find a compromise bill that can pass. Doing nothing is not an option, even if we are five weeks from an election.

The Associated Press reported that 13 of the 19 “most vulnerable” House members voted against the bailout bill. No doubt other congressmen are worried about how this bail out will be perceived by the voters.

Even Goode — who has never done worse than 59 percent at the polls — said, “The calls and communications from citizens in the 5th District were strongly against the measure.”

So people hate the bailout bill. That’s no surprise. Just one reason Goode mentioned Monday — “politically correct” loans — are infuriating to everyone who has ever had to show their W-2s, credit reports and personal financial information to get a home mortgage loan.

But the bottom line is still the same — the country’s financial system can’t be allowed to collapse.

The House will try again on Thursday.

Let’s hope our political leaders can find a compromise that will satisfy them — and avoid even more financial problems. Main Street may not have created this crisis, but it will pay a steep price if it’s not resolved.