By Tom Saul

Action is needed — and soon — to rescue flagging financial firms before their woes slam homeowners, workers and retirement investors, U.S. Rep. Phil Hare, D-Ill., said during a news conference Tuesday.

“Hopefully, by the weekend, we’ll have some kind of bill ready for passage,” Hare said. “Every day we don’t do something, the more risk there is and the more money will be lost.”

Hare, who represents parts of western Illinois, voted in favor of a failed $700 billion package Monday that some said was nothing more than a bailout of greedy financiers who made bad investments and who should be forced to take the consequences.

The bill went down on a 228-205 vote in the House of Representatives and led to a nearly 778-point plunge in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the largest one-day drop in its history.

Hare called the bill, a bipartisan effort that replaced a plan crafted by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, a loan to Wall Street that would be paid back in five years. It also capped big payouts to executives of failed firms, provided oversight of how taxpayers money is used, and helped some of the 2 million U.S. homeowners who face foreclosure.

Hare said he was not critical of those who voted against the bailout, such as Rep. Bruce Braley, D-Iowa. It was “not a perfect bill.” But, he added, he wanted to “err on the side of ordinary people.” The loan would help people keep their homes and jobs, investments for their children’s college educations and retirement.

“I’m proud of my vote and I don’t apologize for it,” Hare said. “It is better to do something then to sit back and do nothing.”

A new bill could come up as early as Thursday, Hare said. The country can’t afford to wait until after the upcoming presidential election to see action. If there are further delays in finding a fix, “there will be a serious problem before the next president is sworn in.”

A spokesman for Braley’s office did not return two phone calls seeking comment on his expectations or stance on any new bill that comes forward.