Bernie Sanders: Why the Bailout Bill Shouldn't Pass

And the Independent senator brought visual aids with him...


Related:

Sanders Amendment: Make Wall Street Pay for Bailout

“Vermonters and people across America are saying very clearly that this bailout is a bad idea and that the struggling middle class should not have to pay for the greed and excesses of Wall Street. I have received hundreds of calls and more than 2,000 e-mails from Vermonters, almost all of them against this plan. More than 47,000 people all over the country have joined me in signing a letter to Treasury Secretary Paulson opposing any bailout paid for by the middle class,” Sanders said.

“While the Bush administration has quickly rallied to help Wall Street, it has ignored the needs of the declining middle class. Since President Bush has been in office the wealthiest people in this country have made out like bandits and have not had it so good since the 1920s. The top 0.1 percent now earn more income than the bottom 50 percent of Americans and the top one percent own more wealth than the bottom 90 percent. Incredibly, the richest 400 people in our country saw their wealth increase by $670 billion during the Bush presidency.

Sanders on Bailout: “Let Paulson and His Friends Pay For It"

 

How Not to Spend $700 Billion

So...I watched the Paulson bailout plan hearings today and, for those who didn't, here's what happened.

Paulson:

a) doesn't know if the plan will work.
b) doesn't know exactly how the plan might work.
c) doesn't know who would oversee the plan.
d) doesn't know why he needs $700 billion ASAP (he just does - don't ask questions)
e) doesn't know who the next treasury secretary (aka the Forces of Darkness Economic Overlord) might be.
f) doesn't care.
g) doesn't realize what a completely unprincipled, power hungry moron he is.

On the upside, I learned a new word today: "traunch"

Oh...and in related news, guess who's under FBI investigation?

Senior execs from Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Lehman Brothers and AIG

The bureau is trying to determine whether anyone in those financial institutions, including their senior executives, had any responsibility for providing "misinformation," CNN reported.

A federal law enforcement official confirmed the FBI is now looking at 26 cases of potential corporate fraud related to the collapse of the U.S. mortgage lending industry.

Maybe Bush can pardon them before he leaves office. That would be the right (wing) thing to do.