Cantwell Says Bailout Bill Not the Right Solution

[slipslidingaway]

See link for the full statement...
http://cantwell.senate.gov/news/record.cfm?id=303998


Cantwell delivered the following remarks on the Senate floor Wednesday evening:

“Mr. President, I don't think 5 minutes would possibly be enough time for me to explain all the things I would like to say. I am sure I could spend an hour talking about credit default swaps. I am sure I could spend 2 days talking about the lack of transparency in the financial markets.

“I am sure I could spend a lot of time explaining what I think is the right thing we should do to put as much liquidity into the markets as possible. So I will try to be succinct.

“I came to the Senate knowing what it is like to take a tough vote. To make the decision that is right for the American public. It’s most important to do the right thing. I also know what it is like to see millions of dollars in the stock market go away and watch a stock bubble burst.

“I also know what it is like to stand on the Senate floor, as I did 3 years ago, when someone tried to cram legislation in the Defense authorization bill to open up drilling in the Arctic Wildlife Refuge, and I said then that is was the equivalent to legislative blackmail.

“I am not going to vote for this legislation tonight based on whether someone crams in tax credits, for which I actually have fought so hard. I am going to render my decision based on what I think is important for the American people.

“I think there is something that is missing in our discussion. I applaud Chairman Dodd who has worked hard on the Banking Committee. I applaud my colleague who just spoke, who spoke eloquently about the need to do something.

“But the problem with the legislation before us is that it is choosing winners and losers in corporate America. It is inserting the Federal Government in a role in which they decide, along with the private sector, exactly how funds should be allocated.

“I am for the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government backing these institutions. What I am not for is turning the keys to the Treasury over to the private sector.

“There is much we could agree on tonight. We could agree on the new changes to the FDIC rule. We could agree on mark to market accounting changes and to bringing better marketing and accountability to the system.

“We could agree on the up-tick rule and other predictability measures that help the market understand that there is a broad commitment by this institution to do something to help stabilize the markets.

But I am very concerned about the "pick here, pick there" approach that has transpired in the last several weeks.

“I ask you to just think of one institution, in my State, Washington Mutual -- which I would not necessarily applaud for its subprime lending rates or for its use and backing of credit default swaps, but I would ask you to consider the fact that as that institution was forced into sale by this Government,


“Who were the winners and losers in that?


“J.P. Morgan got the assets of that institution and benefited from that. In fact, J.P. Morgan predicted to me on a conference call the night they acquired Washington Mutual that after one year with their investment, they would have an over $500 million on that investment. That is a 27 percent returned in one year.

“The FDIC got some money out of that, too. And then to say nothing about the over 60,000 shareholders who were wiped out.


“My complaint is: where is J.P. Morgan who should be standing up for the retirement plans, the deferred compensation plans, and other packages that the employees at that company were due?


“It is very convenient for us to now choose that we are going to add to J.P. Morgan's bottom line. In fact, if we would instead do what I am suggesting, we could have an equity proposal instead of having TARP, the Troubled Asset Relief Program, as the roof over America.


“Instead, we could have an equity program where the United States would leverage our capital and spur 10- to 12 times the private sector investment at the same time, our Nation would be better funded, better prepared, for the onslaught of trouble that is still going to remain after we pass this legislation.


“I could not even get my amendment to be considered.


“So, so much for the transparency of the Senate.


“I am going to continue to work for this idea, for equity, for a more leveraged position, and that we do the traditional role that Government has done time and time again: to use our equity to leverage the private sector to secure our economy.

“Thank you Mr. President, and I yield the floor.”

[Not the Only One]

1. A government of, by, and for the corporate interests

Cantwell, Dorgan, Feingold, Johnson, Landrieu, Nelson, Stabenow, Tester, and Wyden. That's the very short list of Democrats who supported us over corporations. Obama isn't on that list, and it's sad.

[lumberjack_jeff]

4. I'm not ready to sing Cantwell's praises.

I think she's opposed simply because the administration will pick and choose different winners than she would.

[customerserviceguy]

13. Exactly

This is a Senator who voted for Alito. She bought her 2000 Senate seat by using her rapidly falling Real Networks stock as collateral for a loan, and persuaded the lender not to call the loan due when the dot-bomb crisis sent the price of the stock plummeting. She paid all the loans back from fundraisers Hillary held as soon as the both of them got to the Senate, where she's voted in near lockstep with DLC policies.

She's benefitted personally from bad lending practices in the state of WA. I used to live there for 37 years, and I saw the whole thing take place. She even used to be the state senator from the district where I lived, then the US Representative after that. She got dumped in the 1994 election debacle, and turned to selling her name to Real Networks, her name appeared on all the email sent to WA residents on their mailing list. As far as I know, she was nothing but a mouthpiece and a lobbyist for them, and she parlayed that into a US Senate seat by outspending the much better Deborah Senn, who brought real reform to what had been the coziest office in WA state, the Insurance Commission. Ms. Senn made sure that health insurers in WA covered alternative care practitioners, and would have led the way on national health insurance if she had been elected Senator to replace the stooge Slade Gorton.

[slipslidingaway]

5. The list of Democrats is too short and I am not happy about

Obama pushing for this bill, this did not just creep up on us, there were plenty of warning signs.


"Obama has a whole team of economic advisors who HAD to know that this could blow up at anytime and Obama should have had an inkling as well, they should have had an alternative (plan) ready.


http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=4146603&mesg_id=4146737

[customerserviceguy]

2. It's all about who gets bailed out for their stupidity/greed

I moved to WA state in 1969, and lived there for 37 years. I remember when WaMu was "the friend of the family" as they called themselves in their ads. When I went to work in the title insurance business in 1976, I was told that the prestigious institution down the street from me in Seattle was a place that one would be proud to have a mortgage from, as their lending standards only dealt with the most credit-worthy of borrowers.

Clearly, their greed led them to not only expand too rapidly across the country, but to lower their lofty standards as well. The shareholders have the muckety-mucks who ran WaMu into the ground to blame. But, they'll all get jobs at other institutions in the industry, and their foolishness will be swept under the rug.

[slipslidingaway]

7. Very true, many were greedy and they will move on. She makes

some valid points about the government picking and choosing who will survive and also benefit from this mess.


“J.P. Morgan got the assets of that institution and benefited from that. In fact, J.P. Morgan predicted to me on a conference call the night they acquired Washington Mutual that after one year with their investment, they would have an over $500 million on that investment. That is a 27 percent returned in one year...

...“My complaint is: where is J.P. Morgan who should be standing up for the retirement plans, the deferred compensation plans, and other packages that the employees at that company were due?


“It is very convenient for us to now choose that we are going to add to J.P. Morgan's bottom line..."

[philly_bob]

3. Cantwell's speech was almost as good as Sanders' speech.

But I went to her website to find out about her amendment and couldn't find anything.

Anybody know?

[slipslidingaway]

8. Just called the DC office and the person who answered

did not know which amendment she was referencing.


Wild guess it might have had something to do with JPM's projected profits and WM pension plans, again just a wild guess.

:shrug:


“My complaint is: where is J.P. Morgan who should be standing up for the retirement plans, the deferred compensation plans, and other packages that the employees at that company were due?


“It is very convenient for us to now choose that we are going to add to J.P. Morgan's bottom line..."

[tavalon]

6. I agree with Maria Cantwell

That's unusual. I haven't cared too much for either of our Senators for a while. Nice to see she can occasionally use her noggin.

[slipslidingaway]

9. Well she used her head on a big ticket item :) n/t

[countryjake]

15. I think she's heard the outcry from farmers in our state, big time...

and while I agree with tavalon, that I've not been too pleased with either of our senators for quite awhile, this time around Sen. Cantwell seems to be echoing much of what I'm hearing up here from small farming operations who have had one hell of an awful season this year. The losses taken with WAMU is effectively putting those farms under, for good. With agri-businesses drooling in the wings, just itching to take over that land. It seems like a plot to many, some who were told that everything was fine, to trust, and now find themselves with no recourse.

The end of WAMU has left many rural small-town counties in a horrific tailspin.

[slipslidingaway]

16. It's great that she listened to people in her state and I appreciate

the added explanation, I would hate to see the small farming businesses lose their land.

[MrCoffee]

10. Thank you Senator Cantwell

for representing the interests of your actual constituency, the people of Washington.

:thumbsup:

[slipslidingaway]

12. Equivalent to legislative blackmail...

shows the pressure that was put on people to pass this bill.

“I also know what it is like to stand on the Senate floor, as I did 3 years ago, when someone tried to cram legislation in the Defense authorization bill to open up drilling in the Arctic Wildlife Refuge, and I said then that is was the equivalent to legislative blackmail.

“I am not going to vote for this legislation tonight based on whether someone crams in tax credits, for which I actually have fought so hard. I am going to render my decision based on what I think is important for the American people."

[slipslidingaway]

11. This thread has some other info...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=4151446&mesg_id=4151446

[countryjake]

17. Oh wow, thanks for all that other info you've dug up in that post...

and thanks for pointing it out...I'd missed seeing that one!

[slipslidingaway]

19. YW, this is a must read thread IMO...

“We Were Programmed to Crash”
McCamy Taylor

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=4138042&mesg_id=4138042

[WA98296]

14. Thank YOU Senator Cantwell!

[OakCliffDem]

18. Kick