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[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 177 (Thursday, November 20, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2307-E2308]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

              EMERGENCY ECONOMIC STABILIZATION ACT OF 2008

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. BETTY McCOLLUM

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 3, 2008

  Ms. McCOLLUM of Minnesota. Madam Speaker, our country is facing an 
economic crisis and America's families are living with it everyday. If 
proof is needed, today, the Labor Department released new employment 
statistics revealing that 159,000 American jobs

[[Page E2308]]

were lost in September. So far this year more than 750,000 American 
jobs have been lost. In September alone, more than 1.5 million 
Americans are working part-time jobs because they cannot find full-time 
work. The wages of American workers are stalled and with inflation at 5 
percent it means most working Americans have effectively taken a pay 
cut. These are hard times for working families.
  This report translates into real pain not just for Main Street, but 
for every family that sits around the kitchen table deciding how to 
make ends meet. We are seeing jobs at risk, credit frozen, business 
activity stalled, and the pensions and college funds of hard working 
Americans at risk. This is an economic crisis and the time for Congress 
to act is now.
  On September 29th, the House failed to pass the economic rescue 
package. I voted for that bill and I have no regrets. As a result of 
the failure of that bill to pass, the stock market went into an 
immediate free-fall resulting in a $1.2 trillion loss of value. That 
translated into seniors losing their retirement, workers losing their 
jobs, and confidence being lost in the American economic system which 
exacerbates the downward economic spiral.
  What Congress is once again attempting to do today is pass an 
emergency package that will provide $700 billion to the Treasury 
Department to buy mortgage-backed securities, sometimes referred to as 
``toxic paper,'' that is strangling the credit market for companies, 
small business, and families. This credit crisis is real and we are 
seeing it manifest itself in the inability of consumers with good 
credit to get auto loans, banks refusing to lend to banks, and 
municipalities unable to access financing for needed projects like 
roads, hospitals and water treatment plants. The entire credit system 
is frozen and it will require action by Congress to salvage our economy 
after years excess, abuse, and corruption by Wall Street.
  The American people, seeing this rescue package with a $700 billion 
price tag, should be angry. I am angry. My office has received 
thousands of calls from constituents who are furious, but anger should 
not be an excuse for inaction. Many of these calls, even the majority, 
have warned me of the evils of what they call a ``socialist 
intervention.'' Many advocated that a better solution would be to keep 
government out of the crisis and let the market solve its own problem 
even if the outcome is a complete economic meltdown. In my estimation, 
such an argument is both irrational and irresponsible.
  The bill before the House today is a critical first step towards 
stabilizing the economy and preventing financial disaster for millions 
small businesses, families and seniors. I support this rescue package 
because Democrats, Republicans, and the Secretary of the Treasury, 
along with the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, came together and 
worked tirelessly, putting politics aside, and put the people's needs 
first in addressing this serious crisis.
  This bill provides $700 billion to buy mortgage-backed securities. 
These are assets with value bundled with distressed assets that will be 
purchased by the government so they can be taken off the books of 
financial institutions, restoring confidence and trust in the 
institutions, and allowing for liquidity to return to the credit 
market. This is not an ideal solution, but it is not a giveaway either. 
This $700 billion is a Federal investment that will buy assets that 
possess value and many experts say taxpayers could break even or earn a 
profit in the end. In the meantime serious oversight, accountability, 
and government regulations have been added to protect the taxpayer. 
There is strong language to help homeowners in financial distress to 
prevent home foreclosure which again makes this bill very important and 
relevant to American families in trouble. Also, I am very pleased that 
prohibitions on golden parachutes for executives from companies 
benefiting from this legislation have been put in place.
  Finally, this legislation is not the end of Congress's efforts to 
address the causes of this crisis, only the beginning. Next week I will 
participate in Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearings to 
explore the root causes of this economic disaster. Where there is 
identifiable malfeasance recommendations for criminal investigation and 
prosecution should be made to the Justice Department. Wall Street's 
high flyers whose excesses and corruption violated the law must be held 
accountable.
  While this package is not perfect, it is Congress's best effort to 
address this economic crisis. A new provision in this bill that I 
support is a temporary increase for insured deposits under the Federal 
Deposit Insurance Corporation from $100,000 to $250,000. This increase 
in deposit insurance is intended to allow for additional liquidity in 
lending and restore confidence for depositors that their money is safe.
  There are other aspects of this bill that were added by the U.S. 
Senate which I strongly object to because they are giveaways to special 
interests. Tax breaks for special interests like NASCAR, the rum 
industry, and the manufacturers of children's arrows is an egregious 
abuse of the legislative process to pass out favors. These giveaways 
result in a $107 billion reduction in revenues to the Federal 
Government meaning more deficit spending.
  My preference would have been to strip these provisions from the 
bill. These pork barrel provisions, if absolutely necessary, should 
have been offset and paid for to eliminate deficit spending. The 
Senate's irresponsible inclusion of these earmark tax giveaways is an 
example of how the other body is out of touch with the needs of 
ordinary Americans.
  This week, concluding with today's vote, the Congress--Democrats and 
Republicans--will take action not seen since the Great Depression to 
intervene to restore confidence in the markets. If successful the 
result will be to avoid dramatic and damaging pain for America's 
families of every income level and geographic location. Doing nothing 
to address this emergency situation would be a decision to condemn the 
U.S. economy and the American people to years of stagnation and hard 
times.
  Following the passage of this bill and its signing into law, there 
must commence a new era of government responsibility, oversight, 
accountability, and, when necessary, regulation of the financial 
markets. The Reagan era of deregulation for markets and labeling 
government as the problem is over. We have seen how this philosophy has 
mutated into the grotesque excesses of Wall Street's elite and their 
massive concentration of wealth. It has infected our economy with a 
financial pathogen that is now destroying small businesses as well as 
the lives of families and the communities they live in.
  The next Congress--the 111th Congress--will have a duty to institute 
unprecedented and tireless oversight of not only this rescue effort, 
but all the excess in the market place, from Wall Street to the 
pharmaceutical industry, and beyond. The Bush administration's 
abdication of its duty to regulate and its endless campaigns of 
misinformation on innumerable issues has eroded the trust American's 
once had in their Federal leaders. From the falsehoods that led this 
Nation to war in Iraq to the current corruption scandal in the Justice 
Department, this White House has destroyed the American people's 
confidence in government. This administration's failure to regulate 
Wall Street and protect taxpayers is just another example of misplaced 
priorities and a costly lack of leadership.
  My vote for H.R. 1424 is a vote to protect the jobs, pensions, 
college accounts, and the savings of millions of hard working 
Americans. This important step must be followed with a new commitment 
to accountability and government oversight. I will be working to make 
sure this rescue package not only helps restore our economy, but 
returns every dollar we invest back to taxpayers.

                          ____________________
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