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Baird: 'Doing nothing was not an option.'
(Columbian, The (Vancouver, WA) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Oct. 3--U.S. Rep. Brian Baird, D-Vancouver, said he received thousands of e-mails and hundreds of phone calls from constituents upset with the $700 billion financial bailout.
But with Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and other federal officials warning the nation "could soon face conditions worse than the Great Depression, doing nothing was not an option," Baird said following Friday's House vote to approve the rescue package.
"If we do not act, millions of people will lose their jobs, their retirement savings," Baird said in a statement. "Their businesses and farms will disappear, and a financial catastrophe will ensue. We've been put in a terrible situation. While this bill is far from perfect, it will help prevent the current economic crisis from getting worse."
Baird said he insisted the bailout protect American taxpayers from any potential losses.
"This was key for me," he said in his statement. "The average taxpayer didn't create this problem. They shouldn't be left holding the bag for it. Under our plan, five years from now, the president will be required to submit a proposal to impose fees or taxes on Wall Street to recoup any losses. However, if these investments turn a profit, we will all share in that profit."
Baird was among the 172 Democrats, along with 91 Republicans, who voted for the bailout. The five-term congressman also supported the package the House rejected earlier this week.
Baird said the legislation also will prevent executives who presided over the financial crisis from reaping huge salaries and bonuses.
"Any company that chooses to participate in the program will not be able to offer their departing executives exorbitant severance packages," he said. "In companies where the government is making a direct purchase, it will also place strict limits on executive salaries and will end the tax deduction for executive salaries over $500,000. For the first time in a long while, adult supervision is returning to Wall Street."
Baird also praised the provision that provides a sales tax deduction for taxpayers in Washington and other states that have a sales tax but no state income tax. Baird first championed that cause during his first successful congressional campaign in 1998.
"Each year, sales tax deductibility brings more than 430 million dollars back into the pockets of Washington residents," he said. "In such uncertain economic times, we simply couldn't afford not to pass it."
To see more of The Columbian, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.columbian.com.
Copyright (c) 2008, The Columbian, Vancouver, Wash.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
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