[영어- 학습] 오늘의 기사 - U.S Lawmakers brace for tough vote on bailout (IHT)

[Dauphin]

오늘의 기사는 IHT나 이코노미스트 중에서 중요한 헤드라인 기사 하나를 같이 읽어보는 코너로 꾸미려고 합니다. 같이 읽고 모르는 말이나 느낌을 댓글로 달아주세요. 단 영어로 달아야 합니다 ^^ (예 : What does "~" mean?, I think ~)

U.S. lawmakers brace for tough vote on bailout (IHT, 9. 29)

 

WASHINGTON: The House braced for a difficult vote set for Monday on a $700 billion rescue of the financial industry after a weekend of tense negotiations produced a plan that congressional leaders portrayed as greatly strengthened by new taxpayer safeguards.

The 110-page bill, intended to ease a growing credit crisis, came after a frenzied week of political twists and turns that culminated in an agreement between the Bush administration and Congress early Sunday morning. The measure still faced stiff resistance from Republican and Democratic lawmakers who portrayed it as a rush to economic judgment and an undeserved aid package for high-flying financiers who chased big profits through reckless investments.

But leaders of both parties in the House and Senate intensified their efforts to sell reluctant members of Congress on the legislation. All sides had to surrender something. The administration had to accept limits on executive pay and tougher oversight; Democrats had to sacrifice a push to allow bankruptcy judges to rewrite mortgages; and Republicans fell short in their push to require that the U.S. government insure, rather than buy, the bad debt.

Even so, lawmakers on all sides said the bill had been significantly improved from the Bush administration's original proposal.

The final version of the bill included a deal-sealing plan for eventually recouping losses; if the Treasury program to purchase and resell troubled mortgage-backed securities has lost money after five years, the president must submit a plan to Congress to recover those losses from the financial industry. Presumably that plan would involve new fees or taxes, perhaps on securities transactions.

This is a major, major change," Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Sunday evening as she declared that negotiations were over and that a House vote was planned for Monday, with Senate action to follow.

The deal would also restrict gold-plated farewells for executives of companies that sell deval‎ued assets to the Treasury Department.

President George W. Bush called the measure "a very good bill" and praised congressional leaders. "This plan sends a strong signal to markets around the world that the United States is serious about restoring confidence and stability to our financial system," Bush said in a statement. "Without this rescue plan, the costs to the American economy could be disastrous."

House Republicans had threatened to scuttle the deal, and proposed a radical alternative that would have focused on insuring troubled debt rather than buying it. In the end, the insurance proposal was included on top of the purchasing power, but there is no requirement that the Treasury secretary use it, leaving them short of that goal.

It is virtually impossible to know the ultimate cost of the rescue plan to taxpayers, but congressional leaders stressed that it would likely be far less than $700 billion. Because the Treasury will buy assets with the potential to resell them at a higher price, the government might even turn a profit.

The bill calls for disbursing the money in parts, starting with $250 billion followed by $100 billion at the discretion of the president. The Treasury can request the remaining $350 billion at any time, and Congress must act to deny it if it disapproves.

That new provision, pushed by House Democrats, was the last to be agreed to in a high-level series of talks that had top lawmakers and White House economic advisers hustling between offices just off the Capitol Rotunda until midnight on Saturday, scrambling to strike an agreement before Asian markets opened Sunday night.

Pelosi, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson Jr. and others taking part in the talks announced that they had clinched a tentative deal at 12:30 a.m. Sunday, exhausted and a little giddy after more than seven hours of sparring. There were several tense moments, none more so than when Paulson, a critical player, suddenly seemed short of breath and possibly Illinois He was tired, but fine.

Trying to bring around colleagues who remained uncertain of the plan, its architects sounded the alarm about the potential consequences of doing nothing. Senator Judd Gregg of New Hampshire, the senior Republican on the Budget Committee and the lead Senate negotiator, raised the prospect of an economic catastrophe.

"If we don't pass it, we shouldn't be a Congress," Gregg said.

Both presidential candidates, Senator John McCain of Arizona, the Republican nominee, and Senator Barack Obama, the Democratic candidate, gave guarded endorsements of the bailout plan. Both McCain and Obama had dipped into the negotiations during a contentious White House meeting on Thursday..

On Sunday evening, both parties convened closed door-sessions in the House to review the plan, and conservative House Republicans remained a potential impediment.

 

But the party leadership was circulating information aimed at refuting some of the main criticisms of the bail-out, indicating they were poised to support it. "I am encouraging every member of our conference whose conscience will allow them to support this bill," said Representative John Boehner of Ohio, the Republican leader.

A series of business-oriented trade associations with influence with Republicans also began weighing in on behalf of the plan.

"The Chamber believes the legislation contains the necessary elements to successfully remove the uncertainty and stem the turmoil that has plagued financial markets in recent weeks," the United States Chamber of Commerce said in a statement issued on Sunday.

Members of the conservative rank-and-file remained unconvinced.

"While it creates a gimmicky $700 billion installment plan, attempts to improve transparency, and has new provisions cloaked as taxpayer protections, its net effect is still a huge bailout of the financial sector that will snuff out the free market system," said Representative Connie Mack, Republican of Florida.

Some Democrats bristled that they were now being called on to do the financial bidding of an administration they had viewed as previously uncooperative in dealing with executives who had performed irresponsibly or worse.

"Financial crimes have been committed," said Representative Marcy Kaptur, Democrat of Ohio. "Now Congress is being asked to bail out the culprits."

Throughout Sunday, small groups of lawmakers could be found around the Capitol, exchanging their views on the plan. Some said they were willing to take a political risk and back it.

One, Representative Jim Marshall, a Georgia Democrat facing a re-election contest, told his colleagues in their private meeting that he would vote for the measure to bolster the economy. "I am willing to give up my seat over this," Marshall said, according to another person at the session.

The architects of the plan said they realized they were calling on Congress to cast a tough vote since lawmakers might not get credit for averting a financial crisis since some constituents will not believe one was looming.

"Avoiding a catastrophe won't be recognized," said Senator Christopher Dodd, Democrat of Connecticut and chairman of the Senate banking committee. "This economy is not going to have a blossoming on Wednesday."

But he and others said the support from the two presidential contenders, Senators McCain and Obama, should provide some comfort to nervous lawmakers.

While the House was planning to act Monday, the Senate schedule was uncertain and a vote might not occur until Wednesday or later in the week due to Jewish holidays and possible procedural obstacles. But Senate vote-counters were confident they could secure the necessary support.

One of the more contentious issues was how to limit the pay of executives whose firms seek government aid, a top priority for Democrats and even some Republican lawmakers. But it was a concern for Paulson, who worried about discouraging firms from participating in the rescue plan, which seeks to convince companies to sell potentially valuable assets to the government at relatively bargain prices in the end, they settled on different rules for different companies depending on how they participate in the bailout.

Firms that sell distressed debt directly to the government will be subject to tougher pay limits, including a mechanism to recover any bonuses or other pay based on corporate earnings that turn out to be inaccurate or fraudulent and a ban on so-called "golden parachute" severance packages as long as the government has a stake in the firm. The rules apply to the top five executives at each firm.

Companies that participate in auctions, or other market-making mechanisms, and sell more than $300 million in troubled financial instruments to the government, will be barred from making any new employment contract with a senior executive that provides a golden parachute in the event of "involuntary termination, bankruptcy filing, insolvency or receivership."

While some critics said the limits did not go far enough, lawmakers described the provision as a historic first step by Congress to limit exorbitant pay of corporate titans.

"I think we wrote it as tight as we can get it in here," Dodd said.

Congressional staff from both parties and Treasury worked through Friday night and into the predawn, before heading home for some sleep. They resumed work late Saturday morning, and Paulson arrived at the Capitol to join top lawmakers in Pelosi's suite for a meeting at 3 p.m. At least a dozen major differences remained.

The meeting was initially described as a gathering of the five chief negotiators, Paulson, and a Democrat and Republican each from the House and Senate. But additional Democrats piled into the talks, angering Republicans who accused Democrats of packing the sessions.

For a brief, nerve-fraying moment at the outset, one administration participant said, Paulson surveyed the circus-like scene and wondered if everyone was committed to reaching a deal. It was quickly clear that they were. But not before so much information starting leaking out that the BlackBerrys of staff members were confiscated and collected in a trash bin.

At one point, Senator Charles Schumer, Democrat of New York, was thumping the table, demanding to release the $700 billion in installments. At another point, Senator Max Baucus, Democrat of Montana, was shouting at Paulson, accusing him of trying to undermine the limits on pay for executives of companies that seek government help.

One of the last sticking points was an unexpectedly bitter fight over how to protect taxpayers from losses that might mount up if the troubled assets purchased by the government turn out to be losers. Democrats wanted a tax on Wall Street; Republicans insisted on some type of spending cuts. Pelosi pushed a middle ground.

Adopting an idea first advanced by Representative John S. Tanner, Democrat of Tennessee, Pelosi suggested putting off the argument over how to cover the costs for five years. At that time, if there is red ink, the president must develop a plan to recoup the money from the financial services industry, not the public at large.

Robert Pear contributed reporting.