Bailout Package In Place, But Challenges Are Ahead Of Us
BY JOHN TOSCANO

U.S. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton declared a plan was needed that "includes checks and balances, not a blank check"; Congressmember Joseph Crowley said there was an urgent need to put the economy back on track "and Congress did it",

Lawmakers in Washington from this area lauded the huge economic bailout plan enacted last week, saying it was necessary to stabilize the country's economy and protect Americans' retirement savings and home values and restart the flow of credit.

U.S. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton declared a plan was needed that "includes checks and balances, not a blank check"; Congressmember Joseph Crowley said there was an urgent need to put the economy back on track "and Congress did it", and Congressmember Anthony Weiner said that after starting out with a flawed proposal, "the final plan was improved in key ways".

But there are still challenges ahead, said Clinton (D- New York). "We face more than a market crisis," she stated. To meet this threat, she proposes that Congress set these goals: ensuring accountability to taxpayers in executing the plan, rewriting mortgages at risk of default and foreclosure that threaten the housing and financial markets and pursuing broader economic change to prevent future crises, reforming Wall Street, and creating more jobs.

Crowley (D- Queens/The Bronx) said that although both houses passed the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act, "We have not forgotten that those that got us into this situation should be punished."

Toward this end, he said, "We are investigating the regulatory mistakes and financial excesses that led to the breakdowns in our economic sector, and metal bracelets— not a golden parachute—will be awarded to those who abused the law to enrich themselves."

The recovery package, Crowley said, also includes relief from the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) for 25 million middle class families, as well as property tax relief for up to 30 million homeowners, tax cuts for American businesses and families and tax incentives for the production of alternative energy.

Among the highlights emphasized by Weiner in the recovery package were: that taxpayers are protected and eligible to get the profits envisioned under the plan, while financial firms must suffer any losses that may result.

Weiner also called for strict oversight and no blank checks. Also, all moves by the Treasury Department must be posted on the Internet to assure transparency.

He also wants new limits on golden parachutes— failed CEO's (chief executive officers) and executives will not be permitted to walk away from failed enterprises with "outrageous pay packages", he declared.

Weiner wants to help prevent home foreclosures— although there are no guarantees to prevent them, the federal government's control over shaky mortgages will make possible more time to deal with serious problems and keep neighborhoods stable.

"Let's face it, this was a mess that was brought upon us by a combination of lack of regulation by the Bush administration, greed and foolishness by too many in the financial services community and the carelessness of too many consumers," Weiner said.