REUTERS: US Rep. Frank says Democrats agree on bailout bill

[chill_wind]

UPDATE 1-US Rep. Frank says Democrats agree on bailout bill
WASHINGTON, Sept 24 (Reuters) - 9:56pm EDT

Democratic Rep. Barney Frank said on Wednesday Democrats had reached an agreement on a financial bailout plan, and there would be enough votes to pass it and send it to President George W. Bush to sign into law.

"We now have between House and Senate Democrats an agreement on what we think should be in the bill, and we have a meeting scheduled at 10 a.m. tomorrow to meet with the Republicans," said Frank, who chairs the House of Representatives Financial Services Committee.

(...)

"Earlier today it became clear to me we would get the votes to pass this bill," Frank told CNBC in an earlier interview. He said it could take a few days to craft final legislation.

Asked whether the bill will have provisions on the controversial issue of executives' pay, Frank said: "I know we have to do something about CEO compensation. House and Senate Democrats have some good agreement on this. We are going to say no golden parachutes." (Reporting by Richard Cowan and Thomas Ferraro; editing by Chris Wilson)

http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idUSN2448444820080925

[msongs]

1. so barney are you doing a joe lieberman here? nt

[BattyDem]

2. McCain won't arrive in Washington until tomorrow

Guess he won't be able to take any credit! :rofl:

On edit: It sounds like this bill really sucks. :-( If we complain loud enough and the Dems go back to the drawing board, they can always blame McCain for jumping in when he wasn't needed and f*cking things up!

[terryg11]

3. no golden parachutes

that as I understand it is the sticking point for some of the bankers.

I think it's a good idea, if we are going to "bail them out" then there should be some restrictions

[Generic Brad]

6. And we need one more thing in addition to restrictions

I would like to see us be treated as shareholders and profit from their turn around. Was that mentioned?

[Spike from MN]

37. The "no golden parachutes" clause

will be interpreted literally. They'll still get huge sums of money. Just no actual (physical) golden parachutes. Silver or platinum maybe. Not golden.

[Bobbieo]

4. What is a 'golden parachute'?

[MannyGoldstein]

12. A Huge Chunk Of Cash When You Leave/Get Fired n/t

[Bobbieo]

20. Thank you Manny for the explanation. I figured that was about it but I wanted to

be certain.

[bdamomma]

5. this is total BS.

this is sickening and insulting to all of us.

[shadowknows69]

7. I'm with you on that alyce

I'm hitting the phones tomorrow. Make a nusiance of myself.

[bdamomma]

22. I will be calling my reps and senators tomorrow.

we need to keep the heat on them. ENOUGH.

[dweller]

9. really

:wtf: did *moron's astute reasoning tonite win them over?

x(

dp

[annabanana]

8. That's IT? No parachutes?

What about equity? What about restrictions? What about not letting that creep have all the say? There had damn well better be some serious stuff in there besides the stupid parachutes.. (which is 90% PR with the numbers we're talking)

[Hotler]

10. The rolling over has begun. It will end with...

Obama as the final act. He will then come out on the steps of the whithehouse arm and arm with W and tell us it will all be ok.

[mzmolly]

15. Another Rose Garden moment?

Gawd, I hope not.

[knowledgeispwr]

11. Do we know what's in the bill before we go around pulling our hair out?

saying they agree on a bailout plan doesn't mean they agree on $700 Billion with no restrictions. I'll wait before jumping to conclusions.

[Hotler]

19. I haven't heard the word imprisonment yet.

The paying back of ill gotten gains. No fingers being pointed. I want to know who is behind this mess before any of my money goes to this treasonous scam.

[mzmolly]

13. They better have a load of Republicans on board.

Namely McCain!

[Algorem]

14. somebody's planning on being Senator Frank.

[chill_wind]

16. Politico: "I Think We're Getting Close," Frank says. (5 points)

By Glenn Thrush

Sep 24, 2008


Excerpt:

Five points from Frank:

1. Democrats' insistence on changes to the bankruptcy law to help distressed homeowners rewrite terms of their mortgages has emerged as "contentious" issue between Paulson and Democrats - with the secretary giving less ground on this point than others.

2. Paulson will probably agree to a down payment on the $700 billion, first proposed by Chuck Schumer -- provided he gets assurances that the money will be there when he needs it. "I think that issue is one where they're making progress," Frank said.

3. In another big concession on the scale of compensation caps, the administration is "permissive" about the idea of giving the federal government an equity stake in companies that use the bailout. "We're gonna put it in and I think he accepts the fact that it's going to be in there," Frank says.

4. House and Senate Democrats will probably produce a bill and hand it off to Congressional Republicans on Thursday.

5. The president's speech tonight will probably help -- even if Frank initially opposed it -- to quell the growing backlash. "If he doesn’t say anything, it's hard for people to get that there's a real crisis," he added.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/24/politics/politico/thecrypt/main4476647.shtml

[sad sally]

23. and don't forget...

if there's anything in the Bill Bush doesn't care for, he can always pull out one of his Signing Statement forms and modify as needed...he's still the chimp in charge.

[dweller]

17. this is not what it seems, read the whole article

i've just scoured the news on the web searching for more info on this: there is none.

Frank is only saying that the DEMS have crafted their own bailout package, and will meet w/ Repugs tomorrow to discuss it w/ them. Sounds more like a 'here's our terms, this is what we will agree to' than a rolling over anything.

again, read the whole reuters link above.
dp

[Sydnie]

27. I have never seen Barney Frank roll over and play dead on anything that he felt he had any power to

change. He is honest enough to tell you when there is nothing that can be done but go on the record against something but this time, I think he knows that he can affect a change. I'll reserve judgement until we get more of the story on what exactly the Dems are proposing on this one.

Don't let me down Barney!

[chill_wind]

18. IHT: Bush seeks support for bailout; Paulson gives in on executive pay

By Sheryl Gay Stolberg and David M. Herszenhorn
Published: September 25, 2008


A senior Democratic leadership aide said that lawmakers from both the House and Senate planned to meet in Washington at 10 a.m. on Thursday to hammer out "a final bipartisan bill to be passed and signed into law." The aide, who asked not to be named because of the delicate nature of the talks, said, "Not too many unresolved issues remain."


(...)


But it was Paulson's comments about limiting the pay of executives that signaled the biggest shift in the White House position and the increasing urgency that the administration has placed in winning congressional approval as quickly as possible.


Paulson, of course, received hundreds of millions of dollars as the chief executive of Goldman Sachs. "The American people are angry about executive compensation, and rightly so," he said. "No one understands pay for failure."

Officials said that the legislation would almost certainly include a ban on so-called golden parachutes, the generous severance packages that many executives receive on their way out the door, for firms that seek government help. The measure also is likely to include a mechanism for firms to recover any bonus or incentive pay that is based on corporate earnings or other results that later turn out to have been overstated.

Democrats were also working to include tax provisions that would cap the amount of an executive's salary that a company could deduct to $400,000 — the amount earned by the president. At the same time, congressional Democrats signaled an increased willingness to compromise and said they were prepared to drop one of their most contentious demands: new authority for bankruptcy judges to modify the terms of first mortgages.

That provision, aimed at preventing foreclosures, was heavily opposed by Senate Republicans. The Democrats' position was emphasized by Obama, who said he was willing to sacrifice that provision in the interest of having a deal completed. The main proponent of stronger bankruptcy laws is Senator Richard Durbin, Democrat of Illinois, who is perhaps Obama's closest supporter in the Senate.

more (2 pages) http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/09/25/business/25bush2.php?page=2

[chill_wind]

21. Bloomberg

Democrats, Republicans Close to Agreement on Rescue, Frank Says

By Scott Lanman

Sept. 24 (Bloomberg) -- Democratic and Republican leaders in Congress are close to agreement on legislation for a Treasury Department rescue of the U.S. financial system, House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank said.

``The Democrats have come to a coordinated position,'' Frank said in an interview with CNBC after President George W. Bush addressed the country on the financial crisis. ``We are very close to our Republican colleagues who want to support this. We know where Treasury is.''

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson today reversed his opposition to addressing executive pay in the legislation, which Frank said was a ``big breakthrough.''

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=a2vBHhgbrJr0&refer=home

[bdamomma]

24. I am still calling my Reps and Senators

they are steamrolling all over us.

[greyghost]

26. They're just kicking it down the road, The economy is going to

completely tank any way. There is no point forestalling the inevitable.

I find myself it the true conservative camp on this one, NO BAILOUT PERIOD!

[bobbolink]

29. Yeah, isn't it weird... I read the comments of Tancredo and Musgrave in the paper

today, and agree more with them!

Politics and bedfellows... oh, icky.

:hi:

[greyghost]

31. :)

How true.:)

[nadinbrzezinski]

25. This is NOT what Treasury wanted

:banghead:

[chill_wind]

28. TPM /AP : "some partisan sticking points remain."

Deal said to be near on big financial bailout plan

Compromise close on $700 billion bailout as Bush plans White House summit seeking quick deal

JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS
AP News
Sep 25, 2008 08:31 EST

(...)

Some partisan sticking points remain.

Democrats are pushing to allow bankruptcy judges to rewrite mortgages to ease the burden on consumers who are facing foreclosure — a nonstarter for Republicans.

]Democrats acknowledge privately that the provision will almost certainly be dropped in the interest of a bipartisan deal. Obama told reporters it's "probably something that we shouldn't try to do in this piece of legislation."

Democrats also want any potential proceeds the government reaps from the bailout to go to a fund designed to pay for housing for poor families. Many Republicans oppose the very existence of the fund, which they say is a backdoor means of funneling money to liberal political groups.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/2008/09/deal_said_to_be_near_on_big_fi.php

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

30. Democratic "leaders" fold = water is wet.

And, they wonder why the congress has lower ratings than the nincompoop fratboy.

Of course, in a few months, they'll tell us they were "misled".

[redqueen]

32. What about the EQUITY STAKE?!

Where is our quid pro quo?!

:banghead:

[ikojo]

33. Democrats shaft the working class and roll over ONCE AGAIN

for Bush....

Perhaps all of those lawyers in the house and senate should familiarize themselves with the meaning of the word OPPOSITION...



American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
op·po·si·tion (ŏp'ə-zĭsh'ən) Pronunciation Key
n.

1.
1. The act of opposing or resisting.
2. The condition of being in conflict; antagonism: "The history of men's opposition to women's emancipation is more interesting perhaps than the story of that emancipation itself" (Virginia Woolf).
3. The position of two celestial bodies when their longitude differs by 180°, especially a configuration in which Earth lies on a straight line between the sun and a superior planet or the moon.
4. The position of the superior planet or the moon in this configuration.
2. Placement opposite to or in contrast with another.
3. Something that serves as an obstacle.
4. often Opposition A political party or an organized group opposed to the group, party, or government in power.

[Phred42]

34. Can't wait to hear the details

[OneGrassRoot]

35. What is Obama saying? n/t

[chill_wind]

38. Whatever Warren Buffet is telling him to say.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x4073866#top

[TexasObserver]

36. Unfortunately, Barney Franks has made himself the poster boy for the Bailout.

Thanks for nothing, Barney.

[chill_wind]

39. kicking