A day after watching the U.S. House of Representatives kill a $700 billion financial package as the stock market dropped more than 700 points, voters continued to vent their rage toward Washington.
But fewer of them did than in the days preceding the vote, and more of them encouraged lawmakers to support the package—or simply to do something.
On the political map there’s no pattern to what members of Congress are hearing from their constituents. While Congressional offices are calm in Iowa and Minnesota, Coloradans, Michiganders and New Mexicans still appear exercised over Monday’s vote and the prospect of a future vote.
“It’s pretty quiet here,” Rick Jauert, a spokesman for Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.), said. “It is nothing like it was yesterday.”
“There’s still a good deal of calls and emails and faxes,” Jameson Cunningham, a spokesman for Rep. Thad McCotter (R), said.
While most Congressional offices estimated the number of calls and emails they received, Rep. Tom Udall (D-N.M.), a candidate for Senate who opposed the bill, crunched the numbers.
Udall received 831 emails and roughly 400 calls to its Washington and New Mexico offices. Two-thirds to 75 percent opposed to the bill. Those calls were split between those who wanted no bailout and those who support a different proposal, according to spokesman Sam Simon.
Before Monday’s vote, Udall’s offices received roughly 1,800 emails and 1,000 phone calls. Most were opposed to the package.
His opponent in the Senate race, Republican Rep. Steve Pearce, received fewer calls on Tuesday, and the tone had changed, too, from opposition to the bill to a desire for lawmakers to just “do something,” said Brian Phillips, Pearce’s spokesman. Pearce voted against the bill.
McCotter’s office experienced a huge spike in calls when the vote on the House floor started and the stock market crashed, Jameson Cunningham, McCotter’s spokesman, said. The day after the vote, he received roughly 300 calls running 3 to 1 against the bailout, a dramatic drop from Monday and last week.
Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) received hundreds of calls before the vote, but constituents now seem more supportive of a measure to stave off disaster in the credit markets, Kristofer Eisenlaw, DeGette’s spokesman, said.
Meanwhile, Rep. Leonard Boswell (D-Iowa) and Rep. Ellison, both of whom supported the bill, have not been inundated with angry calls.
Boswell’s Des Moines and Washington offices were flooded with phone calls in the days after Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson submitted his original proposal to Congress, but the calls slowed down.
“It’s fairly quiet,” Susan McAvoy, Boswell’s spokeswoman, said. “There have been some calls in the Des Moines office, but I think people are taking a pause and seeing where this is going.”
Even though voters’ anger has simmered down, the hiatus might not last very long.
The Senate is expected to be in session today, the House will return on Thursday, and the coalition of liberal and conservative lawmakers who banded together to kill the bill will be hard pressed by the White House and Congressional leadership to reverse their “no” votes.
Jonathan E. Kaplan is the Center for Independent Media’s Washington correspondent.













2 Comments »
Comment posted October 1, 2008 @ 12:50 pm
The Bank of Shanghai can transfer all of its toxic assets to the Bank of Shanghai of Los Angeles which can then sell them the next day to the Treasury. I had a provision to say if it wasn’t owned by an American entity even a subsidiary, but at least an entity in the US, the Treasury can’t buy it. It was rejected.
The bill is very clear. Assets now held in China and London can be sold to US entities on Monday and then sold to the Treasury on Tuesday. Paulson has made it clear he will recommend a veto of any bill that contained a clear provision that said if Americans did not own the asset on September 20th that it can’t be sold to the Treasury.
Hundreds of billions of dollars are going to bail out foreign investors. They know it, they demanded it and the bill has been carefully written to make sure that can happen.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=873682522&play=1
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What is wrong with this country? What the HELL is wrong with congress?
Is congress nothing but a WHORE TO WALL STREET DOLLARS?
HOW CAN CONGRESS VOTE FOR A BILL THAT TRANFERS HUNDREDS OF BILLIONS OF DOLLARS TO FOREIGN INVESTORS? IS EVERYONE INSANE?
KILL, KILL, KILL, KILL, KILL, KILL , KILL THIS BAILOUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
MEMBERS OF CONGRESS WHO VOTE FOR THIS SHOULD BE JAILED FOR TREASON.
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To all the average america who has no savings, no job, and no house, this bailout offers NOTHING BUT PAIN.
This bailout is NOT designed to create jobs OR help people keep their homes OR help deal with rising costs (will make it worse) OR reduce the tax burden (will make it worse). This bailout is designed to preserve the wealth, which will overwhelming benefit the richest 10% at the expense of everyone else.
Comment posted October 1, 2008 @ 6:43 pm
Bipartisan or Buy-Part-Of-Sin
When one gallon of gas equals the hourly wage of one employee, main street businesses didn’t get to where they are at by borrowing to make payroll. They are borrowing to pay the unbelievable and unforeseen increases in shipping costs, extravagant inventory, increased insurance and general cost of doing business in this backwards economy.
I am not alone in the anger that is shared by ‘MAIN STREET”. I will not vote for ANY politician who votes to pad the pockets of those who finance their campaign and my opinion is being echoed in conversations across the country. Remember politicans, if you don’t get elected you have zero value to you corporate friends.
This bailout doesn’t save one single home of a hard working family and putting these empty foreclosed home back into the market decreased the property value of the middle class neighborhoods who are still struggling to make their payments. My home will now be sitting next to its mirrored image that just sold for a fraction of what I owe to a CEO slum lord who will be making a profit renting it to a crack dealer.
If you want to help American, get some handcuffs and a backbone. Lower fuel cost and the economy will rebound.
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