Recession
10-03-2008, 01:08 PM
After two weeks of contentious and often emotional debate, the federal government's far-reaching and historic plan to bail out the nation's financial system was signed into law by President Bush on Friday afternoon.
"By coming together on this legislation, we have acted boldly to prevent the crisis on Wall Street from becoming a crisis in communities across our country," Bush said less than an hour after the House voted 263 to 171 to pass the bill.
The House vote followed a strong lobbying push by the White House and other supporters of the bill. The House rejected a similar measure on Monday - a defeat that shocked the markets and congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle.
The law, which allows the Treasury Secretary to purchase as much as $700 billion in troubled assets in a bid to kick-start lending, ushers in one of the most far-reaching interventions in the economy since the Great Depression.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said he welcomed the news. "The legislation is a critical step toward stabilizing our financial markets and ensuring an uninterrupted flow of credit to households and businesses," he said.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said he would act swiftly but "methodically" to carry out the plan.
"The broad authorities in this legislation, when combined with existing regulatory authorities and resources, gives us the ability to protect and recapitalize our financial system as we work through the stresses in our credit markets," Paulson said.
http://recession.org/news/bush-signs-bailout-plan
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recession (http://recession.org/library)
"By coming together on this legislation, we have acted boldly to prevent the crisis on Wall Street from becoming a crisis in communities across our country," Bush said less than an hour after the House voted 263 to 171 to pass the bill.
The House vote followed a strong lobbying push by the White House and other supporters of the bill. The House rejected a similar measure on Monday - a defeat that shocked the markets and congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle.
The law, which allows the Treasury Secretary to purchase as much as $700 billion in troubled assets in a bid to kick-start lending, ushers in one of the most far-reaching interventions in the economy since the Great Depression.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said he welcomed the news. "The legislation is a critical step toward stabilizing our financial markets and ensuring an uninterrupted flow of credit to households and businesses," he said.
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said he would act swiftly but "methodically" to carry out the plan.
"The broad authorities in this legislation, when combined with existing regulatory authorities and resources, gives us the ability to protect and recapitalize our financial system as we work through the stresses in our credit markets," Paulson said.
http://recession.org/news/bush-signs-bailout-plan
recession (http://recession.org/library)
recession (http://recession.org/library)