Poll | 09/30/2008 8:30 am

Why do you think Americans are so against the Paulson Plan?

Read more about: Economy, Finance, Government, Henry Paulson, Meltdown

138 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

I’m against the bailout because I don’t think I should be the one to pay for cleaning up the greed which occurred. I’m convinced that’s what it is. The CEO’s of these failing institutions got millions because of their incompetencies and the people who took out the nasty loans, who knew darn well they would eventually be faced with “time to pay”, got to enjoy life to the max for a while. The only thing I will get is my tax money going down the drain. I will pay, my children will pay, my children’s children will pay….and several generations to come will pay. Let’s take a chance and see what happens down the road.

By Rainbow Power on 09/30/2008 8:25 am

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It should not be called a “bailout” because people don’t realize it’s bailing them out. It is not perfect, but necessary. Unless you’re in a high tax bracket, nothing will compare to how the average American will suffer. Credit is frozen; no matter how good your credit is try getting a mortgage today, a student loan. Do you want your children to go to college? Forget it, unless you are wealthy enough to pay cash, and now that’s about $100,000. Want to buy something on credit; forget it, credit card companies have already lowered credit limits. Of course, that’s if you have a job. Small business rely on credit and will go under, jobs will be lost. Want to sell your home? Forget it. You might have willing buyers but they won’t be able to get a mortgage. I’m retired and I’m also disabled. I lost so much money yesterday in my 401K that I honestly don’t know how I’ll survive. I’m too sick to go back to work. Who’s going to help me. My state (MA) couldn’t meet their budget yesterday. This is not a bailout; it’s a lifesaver for the middle class. The rich will always maintain themselves.

By Flora Dora on 09/30/2008 8:43 am

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Flora, I think that the Senate is hammering out changes that will make the bill more palatable. They’ve not only heard from the House members, they are hearing the angry roar across the nation and around the world. I wouldn’t want to be Chris Dodd right now for anything. He’s the head of the banking committe and the bill he helped write helped alot of his Wall St supports. They did to quit yanking all of us around, send out for pizza and cots, pull all nighters, and get it right. I believe this will happen because a lot is at stake including all of their heads. http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/congress-goes-back-drawing-board/s…

By Step away from the BLOG! on 09/30/2008 5:53 pm

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Flora, the only way you lose actual money is by selling your investments while the market is down. Eventually the markets will come back up, or at least they always have. Then, everything that’s still in your account will increase in value.

By Meg Umans on 09/30/2008 7:54 pm

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Meg, I’m disabled and living on dividends. I’ll neyver recover. My eighty nine year old uncle called me yesterday and said he might have to rewrite his will because his portfolio is bleeding. My aunt has Alzheimer’s and needs very expensive care. Some of us are directly affected.My neighbor owns a Mercedes dealership; he says he’ll close at the end of the month because seven of his sales tanked yesterday. They do not want to pay cash or cannot get credit.

By Flora Dora on 10/01/2008 6:03 pm

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Thats right these bankers gave people Loans …when they had no business giving them such loans as they did …I will put it in laymans terms here …and not talk over anyones head …I am a Hippie From The 60’s and I LOVE it …I was a LOVE CHILD …I was made at Christmas …These people got loans for $150,000 + that couldnt even afford $50 grand payments ! They sold their homes and bought new cars and Suv’s and 4 wheelers and vcations and computers , clothes and so on …And I will be darn if I will pay for any of that ! They knew what these poor people would do ….they went BAZERK! They went crazy spending money on Stainless steel appliances and marble floors …I am not going to Pay for that ! A fool and his money are soon gone …and America is falling down ….I see it everyday ….I hear it all the time from people …They have 29 credit cards …..On Oprah show …come on ….Suzy told the couple …YOU CANT AFFORD it ! Sell your Home and rent …Thats what all these greedy people need to do .RENT..who borrowed what they could Never afford in 30 years !

By Eliza Dodd on 09/30/2008 9:16 pm

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I clicked “other” as i think it’s a combination of all of the above coupled with the general population seeing this as bailing out a group of “people” who screwed up and using our money to do it. I also don’t think (and I’m one of these) that the general population truly understands the proposal nor do they believe that the government has thouroughly thought this thru nor discussed other options that might be better. For instance… Flora’s post above… I was listening to a group of people talk yesterday saying “so it means credit would be hard to get… so WHAT”. credit SHOULD be hard to get. I’m not sure the general population understands what that might actually mean. It’s just super complicated and then on top of it the people fixing it look like they’re running around like chickens with their heads cut off. They certainly do not insipired trust.

By Chrome Toe on 09/30/2008 9:00 am

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I voted “other” since I thought it was “all of the above”. However, I may be more amenable to the bail out if it included reimbursement of those golden parachutes; a real look at some of their finances; and who got rich selling with insider information. I’d like to see some prison sentences involved as well though that wouldn’t keep us from paying it. Which brings up another point, of course, we would be paying for this bail out — just like the government to figure out a way to get what little we’re allowed to keep,

By Andy C on 09/30/2008 9:11 am

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I just thought of something… here’s an idea for Barbara Walters or one of the other journalists on this board… I wonder what Obama and McCain and some of the other wealthy congressmen are doing with their PERSONAL money right now. I mean seriously. they have millions of dollars in both asessts and cash (many of them).. Kerry, McCain being some of the more wealthy in the group. so what are they doing? are they running to the bank and moving accounts all around? how frightened are THEY? I’d be very curious to know.

By Chrome Toe on 09/30/2008 9:15 am

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That would be interesting…is Barbara Walters on this thing? I know my mother’s money is sliding—she may end up in my back bedroom. I am also trying to decide whether to take out the rest of my line of credit and pay interest on it…I go back and forth. I thought this thing with the warrants and insurance aspect added (as McCain suggested) would at least stop the clock on freezing credit lines and lowering credit card minimums even if you have good credit etc. I think it sank because the American people said, whoa…what is this? Also, Pelosi let her friends and pets vote against to protect their seats…lots of them. She told them they could. Lots of Dem committee chairs also voted no. If the Dem candidate is such a great decider, with such great judgment, why is he on the sidelines—call me if you need me. I think he wants to not vote so he can not be blamed if a mess still ensues. What leadership.

By Star Lawrence on 09/30/2008 10:59 am

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Huh? More Republicans voted “No” than did Democrats. Pelosi voted ‘Yea”. Vote tally: http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2008/roll674.xml The Senate hasn’t even voted. Neither McCain or Obama have voted. Only the House. When the passage of the Bailout failed, Obama released this statement: “Yesterday, within the course of a few hours, the failure to pass the economic rescue plan in Washington led to the single largest decline of the stock market in two decades. “While I, like others, am outraged that the reign of irresponsibility on Wall Street and in Washington has created the current crisis, I also know that continued inaction in the face of the gathering storm in our financial markets would be catastrophic for our economy and our families…One step we could take to potentially broaden support for the legislation and shore up our economy would be to expand federal deposit insurance for families and small businesses across America who have invested their money in our banks. The majority of American families should rest assured that the deposits they have in our banks are safe. Thanks to measures put in place during the Great Depression, deposits of up to $100,000 are guaranteed by the federal government.” Pelosi’s Floor Speech—-Extremely Clear on Causes and Results: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMLo7i38D58 Here is an EXCELLENT short tape of Democrats AND Republican in the House speaking out before the House bailout vote on why this particular bill is wrong: [wait for video to load] http://newsproject.org/node/133 Newt Gingrich worked aggressively behind the scenes to whip up GOP to vote against bill: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/09/30/report-gingrich-stabbed-b_n_130… 5 Reasons to Vote Against the Bailout Bill and Find a Better Way: http://www.ourfuture.org/blog-entry/2008093928/top-5-reasons-vote-agains… The angry uprising in the US population over corrupt WDC, Wall St, and Corporate America: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-sirota/house-bailout-vote-the-up_b_1… Facts are GOOD things.

By Step away from the BLOG! on 09/30/2008 11:49 am

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The no vote was, 133 Republicans and only 95 Democrats. So why can’t McCain get the Republicans to back this thing he says he wants?

By DeBúrca obj on 09/30/2008 1:02 pm

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We have been over and over why this is—public reaction…Pelosi insisted Reps give her cover—and let some of her people in trouble in their districts vote no. This is open to debate—it happened.

By Star Lawrence on 09/30/2008 3:17 pm

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I meant is NOT open to debate. Everybody screwed up—if voting no is a screwup. I am not sure. I wanted the clock stopped for my family’s welfare—I thought, I was TOLD, but this could work out better.

By Star Lawrence on 09/30/2008 3:18 pm

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And you are saying the Republican “no” votes have nothing to do with trouble in their districts? Perhaps McCain can rally the republicans to pick up the slack since they are the majority of no votes.

By DeBúrca obj on 09/30/2008 4:44 pm