Warning: Major Rant Ahead

Rarely is Congress asked to make a decision as important as the one it voted on yesterday. And the House’s inability to come together to pass a bailout plan is evidence of it being the less deliberative body. Several current House members are in the middle of tough election races, mainly because Congress has a current approval rating lower than even President Bush. In the House, votes are often made along party lines, or for other very selfish and partisan reasons, such as 1) my constituency won’t understand why I voted for this and I can’t risk my neck this November, 2) the Democrats don’t want the bill to look like it was overwhelmingly supported by the Party, in case the bailout goes belly-up we can blame it on Bush and the Republicans.

Hello, McFly! We’re in the middle of a financial crisis and if this does not work we’ll be in even bigger trouble than we are right now. Why not work on legislation that is well thought out and responsible so that there is no hedging of bets on it failing?

I am thoroughly disgusted by the inaction taking place on the Hill. The biggest drop in Wall Street in one day and instead of taking action, we have Representatives on the news finger pointing at the other side as to why this isn’t fixed yet. From the New York Times here are some of the reasons as to why some Representatives voted No:

1. Nancy Pelosi gave a partisan speech right before the vote.- An inappropriate move, but who cares what she says? No one watches C-SPAN!
2. The Republicans voting against cited their opposition to government intervention.- Isn’t the lack of regulation and intervention during the unfolding mortgage crisis the reason we’re at this point now?
3. The Democrats voting against didn’t want taxpayer money bailing out Wall Street fat cats.- How about the $1 trillion lost yesterday in the market and how that affects people’s retirement?

Again there’s a reason this year’s Presidential election will yield unprecedented voter turnout and why several long-standing House members may not be re-elected, it has to do with the American people waking up from their long slumber and wondering “What the heck happened?” The days of wine and roses are over, its time for everyone to pay a little more attention to what’s happening in Washington D.C.