Clyburn Statement on Financial Rescue Package
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
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WASHINGTON, DC—House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn today commented on the financial rescue package offered by the Bush administration Saturday.
“For eighteen months, the Democratic Congress has been working to reform the housing finance system, address the housing crisis and strengthen the economy for the benefit of the American people, but our efforts have been repeatedly stalled by the White House and its Republican allies in Congress.
“At the eleventh hour, the President proposed a plan to stave off what has been described as certain disaster. Our Committee Chairmen and other leaders are working around the clock on a bipartisan basis on a plan the President handed down on Saturday. Our focus is to work quickly, yet protect the American taxpayers, insulate Main Street from the crisis on Wall Street and stabilize the economy. I believe we are making progress on this package, and we will be ready to vote on legislation soon.
"But I caution the President that we can not pass this package without his Party's support. If it's a crisis—as Secretary Paulson and Chairman Bernanke argue—and we all need to come together, then as leader of this nation, the President needs to take the lead and bring the country together behind his plan. He must make a case to Congressional Republicans and to the American people that his $700 billion rescue package is the right solution.”
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