Read it yourself: Complete text of bailout bill

A few quick links and thoughts this morning, on what could be a historic day for our country. Or not -- because even if the bailout passes, history may ultimately see it as just the third or fourth in a string of ever-larger government interventions in the late, great American free market.

Here's a complete text of the bailout bill the House will vote on in a few hours. Where's the debate, you ask? Where's the deliberation?  Debate? Deliberation? Man, what century are you from?

The Citigroup take-under of Wachovia was messy and required assistance from the FDIC to avoid failure.

Global investors don't like the idea of bank failures, or near-failures. Even as Congress rushes to give the government $700 billion in spending cash, the Federal Reserve this morning is frantically trying to inject liquidity into the banking system. "There is just no way to describe the size of what the federal reserve is putting out there," said CNBC's Steve Leisman.

The U.S. economy continues to weaken. Housing prices continue to decline. The government is poised to take a much larger role in a weakening economy. (Have a problem with your mortgage? Call your congressman, ask the government to fix your loan).

This is not a slippery slope -- we already slid down the slope. This is the cliff. It is almost impossible to imagine the events of the next year or so without additional large government interventions. Governments like ours don't say no.

One more: The L.A. Times columnist Al Martinez lived through the Great Depression, and writes that the current situation really worries him.

-- Peter Viles

Your thoughts? Comments?

Comments

[Todd Davis]

My favorite part of the revised legislation is that while future "golden parachutes" are restricted..... as in if your company takes the free money giveaway, new corporate hires can't make more than $400k.....

EXISTING GOLDEN PARACHUTES ARE EXEMPTED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I want to know the name of the congressman/woman that raised their hand during this weekend's meetings and said... "I support limiting executive compensation, BUT I think it's wrong to hurt those poor people who ran the banks into the ground with their greed. I will not support legislation that takes away money from these people."

Someone please please find out for me. I'll get the indictment started.

[James]

Well, well, well... What a mighty threesome - Nancy Pelosi (D), Harry Reid (D), President George W. Bush (R)! The bankers and investors made billions and now when faced with losses want us to pay for it. They got (a) toxic mortgages and (b) assets whose values can't be determined by markets (Level 3) and they want us to pay for it. What a deal!

Thank you Democrats (liberal) & Republicans (except the few true conservatives who will vote against the taxpayer bailout). And this country still votes for the liberals for Congress. Ahhh~~ but the good thing is that Congress' approval rating is just above 9%.

One day, maybe one day, the public will realize how the BIG government has finally screwed them.

Well, I called my congressman and my two no good senators (Feinstein and Boxer). Let's see if they care.

[sailor7x]

Krooked man from Krooked K Street here to laugh at you some more!

So you thought we would be happy with 700 billion! HA! This is just the beginning. Don't worry though, we will let you work enough to pay for Wall Street's "mistakes", I mean taxes, and your rent. Make sure you are too busy to go to these websites!

Campaign slogan for November 2008 -
"DON'T YOU GO A CHANGING!!"
VOTE MAJOR FOR A MAJOR PARTY!

Don't go to these websites! Don't waste your votes! Those burgers won't flip themselves!
http://www.ca.lp.org/
http://www.votenader.org/issues/

Now I have to get back to lighting cigars with all those billion dollar bills!

[Tim K.]

Gang, this is the SAME BILL that was proposed. The so-called "protections" are worthless.

The part about executive pay, as pointed above by Todd, is meaningless to current executives.

There is still about paying too much for BAD ASSETS. We should not be buying these assets PERIOD. The only reason the Treasury is buying these assets is NOBODY WANTS THEM. So ANY talk about the taxpayers ultimately profiting is LAUGHABLE. We WILL LOSE MONEY on all these investments, that's why we're being forced to buy them!

[Garrett]

Al Martinez needs to get his facts straight. FDR didn't get us out of the Great Depression (unemployment was still running at 17% in 1942) Tojo and Hitler did. Govt. isn't going to get us out of this fix either but will likely prolong the pain.

BTW if Al "was born in the heart of the Great Depression" (the heart would be after 1929, right?) when was this 10 year old kid rummaging through trash cans? 1939? 1940?1945? Seems like he would have been looking for a meal long after the FDR wonder programs he touts were implemented.

[amir]

The sad part about this bailout is that it's not enough to stop the financial collapse. The mess is so big, it's like they're shooting arrows at an approaching tank, or shouting against the wind, or any kind of better metaphor you'd like.

[HyperGirl]

I don't believe Congress has the power to do anything about existing golden parachutes. Those parachutes are written into contracts, and I don't believe constitutionally Congress can amend contracts ex post facto.

[adoptivefather]

Mr. Martinez:

You are truly pathetic. Blathering on about "pasty face" Bush as if one person or even one party caused the current situation. And admitting stealing from "Birdies Five and Dime" as if it could be justified because you were hungry. Did you ever pay the owner of Birdies back after you started to make some money? Did you??

President Bush didn't ask for 9/11. President Bush did however call for clamping down on Fannie and Freddie several years ago.

President Clinton had ample opportunity to kill bin laden and perhaps prevent 9/11. Instead President Clinton disgraced the Oval Office doing things that practically any other American would have been fired on the spot had they been caught on their own job site.

As bad as the financial situation is much worse is ahead.

All the unfunded handouts of retirement and health benefits to government workers are about to surface like a blue whale next to the subprime jelly fish.

And as those liabilities are exposed and promises broken, the realization that America produces 50% less oil today compared to 1970 during a period where we also grew our population by 50% is just starting to sink in.

The opposing trends of rising population and decreasing oil production are totally unsustainable and will cause increasing chaos and heartache.

Those opposing trends are why gasoline has risen to $4/gallon, not a scheming Bush and his 'oil buddies' as you probably believe. Soon $4/gallon will look practically free as production keeps falling, population keeps rising and market rebalance it all.

Oh, and what about population rising? While you sit and moan, you fail to recognize that the most dramatic refugee crisis in the history of the world is about to vastly accelerate.

Refugees from across the globe are headed towards America by any means they can believing they can survive if they make it. We are not prepared for what is now starting to unfold.

Stop your political pandering and start acting like a citizen of a country facing the greatest combined threats since our founding fathers blood was spilled.

Are you a citizen? Or are you something else?

[sfvrealestate]

Peter, I'd still like to read your complete take on all this (unless I missed your opinion over the weekend). Do you believe there is a crisis? What do you think is the best way to solve it?

[GEAH]

What was Pelosi thinking when she went partisan right before what needed to be a bi-partisan vote?

[JeffSnyder]

In order to get a gov't bailout, execs should be required to sign a lein against salary, bonuses and golden parachutes that would put them at the GS level of the president of the US.
This bill is all wrong - the timing, the wording , the sources, the backers, the rationale, the beneficiaries, the basic philosophy-if any.
Rep. Kucinich is precisely centered on this. He would make a great pres.
Why is Obama for it???