Rep. Scott Garrett, R-Wantage, said this morning he will continue to oppose the financial bailout package.
"I know the bill will pass later on because so much has been added to it to get it votes. But I'm hopeful then that all the promises that have been made by the proponents of this bill will come true after we give $700 billion to [Treasury] Secretary[Henry] Paulson and whoever follows him in two or three months from now. The promises that the markets will open up and the markets will go up and credit will be free-flowing soon."
I come to the floor realizing there is a problem on Wall Street that will affect Main Street.
I also come here today hopeful but also realistic. I will not be supporting this bill today but I know the bill will pass later on because so much has been added to it to get it votes.
But I'm hopeful then that all the promises that have been made by the proponents of this bill will come true after we give $700 billion to Secretary Paulson and whoever follows him in two or three months from now. The promises that the markets will open up and the markets will go up and credit will be free-flowing soon.
I come here also realistic. Realistic to know that if you don't tackle the underlying problems, we will be right back in this house on this floor seeking more money and more reform.
Realistic also to know that if you don't allow for alternatives, we will not get the best bill. And we know that Speaker Pelosi and the White House were not open to listening to any alternatives, and there was alternatives out there.
And realistic also in knowing that if you fail to investigate early enough, these problems will come up as they have. Back in the spring of we and my Republican colleagues asked for investigations on this matter and we were rebuffed, being told by the chairman, 'I do not think it's necessary that we have hearings on the soonest possible date.'
Madame speaker, I come here not in support of this bill, I support doing something in light of the remarks of economist Robert Shimer who says, 'The U.S. has long been a beacon of free markets. When economic conditions turn sour in other countries, we give very clear instructions of what to do: Balance the budget, maintain free trade, the rule of law, and do not prop up failing enterprises.'
He said it, I agree with him. That has always been the U.S. approach and I believe it is the correct approach.
When the United States ignores its own advice in this situation, we reduce our credibility ... Rewriting the rules of the game at this stage will therefore have serious ramifications not only for the people of this country, but for the globe and the world as well.
You see, Madame Speaker, the social cost of this is far, far greater than the $700 billion that we've talked about today. And with that, I yield back.
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Later in the day, Garrett's office put out this statement:
I know that American families are suffering and our financial markets are in turmoil. Nevertheless, I remain wary of using taxpayer dollars to prop up failing businesses when Congress has been given no guarantee that this bill is the best or only option.The bill passed by the Senate Wednesday night is fundamentally no different from the bill brought before the House on Monday. At its very core, it is still the use of taxpayer dollars to purchase toxic assets from bank balance sheets.
While I did not support the passage of this package today, I join with my constituents and Americans across the country in anxiously awaiting a change in our economic conditions.In the event that this legislation fails to remedy our economic woes, the quality of discussion that emerged from the House of Representatives this week is proof that we have the ability to find alternative solutions to our problems.Several alternatives to the bailout were proposed, many of which merit revisiting as we talk about long-term solutions for the stability of our economy.
After this bill’s passage, I think now more than ever, the establishment of a Select Committee on Bailouts is necessary. Taxpayer risk should not be a partisan issue, so I am pleased to have introduced legislation to establish such a committee with Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur, a Democrat from Ohio.This Select Committee will be tasked with finding out what exactly happened in the conference rooms at the Treasury, the Federal Reserve, and in the halls of Congress this year. After all, when the American taxpayer is footing the bill—we deserve to have all of the facts.
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