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N.M. Delegation Split on Bailout: Senators, Wilson support move; Pearce, Udall express concerns(Albuquerque Journal (NM) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Sep. 20--WASHINGTON -- New Mexico's U.S. senators, as well as Rep. Heather Wilson, said Friday that the federal government has little choice but to use its financial muscle to help stabilize a trembling Wall Street. But Rep. Steve Pearce said in a Journal interview that he is "deeply suspicious" of a Bush administration plan expected in Congress early next week that would use tax dollars to buy hundreds of billions worth of bad mortgages. "It's deeply concerning," said Pearce, a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate. "When we say that institutions are too large to fail, what kind of economic principle is that? To lay this burden at the doorstep of the taxpayers is not going to get us out of this at all." A spokesman for Rep. Tom Udall, a Democrat who is vying against Pearce for the U.S. Senate seat, said Udall wouldn't judge the emerging plan Friday because he had not seen the details. Udall issued a statement citing three elements that should be included in any proposal to address the financial crisis. "There are three critical goals: protecting the taxpayer; keeping Americans in their homes; and restoring market confidence so we can begin to grow our economy again," Udall said. Sen. Pete Domenici, a New Mexico Republican and former Senate Budget Committee chairman, said the Bush administration is confronted with "absolutely imponderable problems" related to the credit crisis and said he is likely to support using some money to shore up shaky lenders. "We better not argue about the size of the fire hose; we better just get the fire hose established and get it flowing because the entire credit system of the United States is at stake," Domenici said. "I'm not sure in the end how much the taxpayer will pay, but I'm more than sure if we don't do something, everybody is going to lose," he said. And if the fix requires Congress to stay in session beyond its planned Friday recess date, so be it, he said. "We'll stay here until it's done," Domenici said. Sen. Jeff Bingaman, a Democratic member of the Senate Finance Committee, and Wilson, a Republican, both said they were glad to see that the proposal brewing in Washington on Friday aimed to head off future bailouts. "I'm encouraged that the administration seems to be trying to get out ahead of this problem, instead of just coming along every other week and bailing out another financial institution," Bingaman said in an interview. But Bingaman said the Bush administration needs to answer to taxpayers who might be angry to see their money being used to rectify Wall Street's mistakes. "It's going to be a valid question, and the administration is going to have to have answers for that," Bingaman said. "I don't know ... whether the taxpayer would be likely to incur substantial losses." Wilson, in an interview, said it's important to shore up lending institutions to avoid panic. "I like the idea of becoming proactive, of setting up a trust to go out and find the bad loans and get those off the books of the financial institutions so that we keep liquidity in the markets and people can still get loans," Wilson said. To see more of the Albuquerque Journal, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.abqjournal.com. Copyright (c) 2008, Albuquerque Journal, N.M. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |