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Washington DC – Congressman Devin Nunes released this statement following House passage of the Wall Street bailout legislation:

“Our economy has slowed to a crawl and American workers are worried about their jobs.  These conditions are clear arguments for action by our government.  The question each of us had to ask was whether or not the $700 billion Paulson plan was right for our country.  In the final analysis, I believe it is wrong.

My goal in opposing the Paulson plan was to seek changes, not to kill needed legislation.  I and others sought to change the focus from failed Wall Street investments to the financial health of our banks.

We believed that the top priority of our government should be to make certain that U.S. banks are the strongest in the world; that our lending institutions have the capital they need to keep small businesses going and to provide consumers access to credit.  At the most basic level, we sought to establish confidence that our banks are a safe place to put money.

Handing over $700 billion to the Secretary of the Treasury is not the best way to accomplish this goal.  The most effective way to shore up our banks is to have the Federal Reserve work with struggling institutions and to infuse them with cash.

Those of us who voted against the Paulson plan offered alternatives.  We sided with the American people and rejected the notion that Congress had only two alternatives; passage of the Paulson plan or another Great Depression.

This artificial choice is in large part the result of the panic created by government officials and Wall Street pundits.  Artificial choices are no way to govern and starve our democracy of the deliberative process.  In place of careful reflection and sound judgment, we end up with reactionary policies.

However, with the passage of this legislation the Congress has given both money and sweeping new authority to the Treasury Secretary.  I call on him to use this authority wisely and to focus his attention on our nation’s banks.  The Treasury should purchase preferred shares with warrants from institutions in need of capital.  It should not buy bad debt from Wall Street.

Wall Street doesn’t need a bailout but our nation’s banks and lending institutions do need support.”

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