Today’s vote on the floor of the house is one that will undoubtedly be on the minds of Americans for years to come.  The bipartisan legislation that passed in the Senate and which was voted on today added significant new protections for taxpayers on Main Street, including increasing the amount of bank deposits insured by the government from $100,000 to $250,000 through 2009 and protecting 21 million middle-class families from getting hammered by the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) for tax year 2008. It also guarantees that irresponsible corporate and Wall Street executives will not be rewarded with golden parachutes or severance pay.

As a result of the drastic improvements made in the Senate legislation compared to the Bush Administration’s plan, which I voted against, I voted in favor of the newest plan because it protects New York taxpayers from higher income taxes under the AMT and will save jobs in Western New York.  From the beginning my colleagues and I knew that our current economic turmoil was not something we could wish away and if this legislation had failed to pass American jobs would be in jeopardy and small businesses would have faced problems growing financially and creating and retaining jobs.

On Monday, I voted against a bad bill, which did not provide protections for taxpayers and did not address the fundamental problem that caused our economic crisis.  Today’s legislation was a significant improvement, one which I hope will restore confidence in our financial markets and allow for small business in Western New York to continue to grow and flourish.  This has been a very difficult decision, one in which the input from you my constituents was a key component.  I want to thank everyone who has called and emailed my office over the last two weeks and encourage everyone to continue to do so.

Today, the Financial Rescue Plan or the $700 billion dollar taxpayer funded bailout, failed to get enough support from either side of the aisle to pass.  I, as many of you know, did not support the plan because of its failure to protect the taxpayers. This bailout failed to address the fundamental cause that created this problem and failed to lessen the credit and housing crunch. It creates the largest national debt in U.S. history, forcing generations of taxpayers to pick up the tab for Wall Street losses.

Since the beginning of this crisis, I have stated that I would not support a taxpayer funded bailout of irresponsible lenders and borrows. Although the plan was considerably better than the Bush Administration’s proposal of last week, including important provisions to eliminate CEO and Wall Street Executive’s golden parachute and increasing Wall Street accountability, mere improvements were not enough to gain my support.

There are alternatives to the Paulsen/Pelosi plan and today I cosponsored a plan that allows Wall Street to work this out and not bail them out. We must now come together solve this crisis in a way that the American people support.

To read my statement regarding the vote click here.

 To read my statement regarding the plan I cosponsored click here.

Over the last six months we have watched as our financial institutions began to unravel starting with the take over of Bear Sterns by JP Morgan which was brokered by the government. The unraveling continued to progress as we watched Fannie and Freddie placed under government control and Lehman Brothers, an investment bank which has been around for over 150 years and one that survived the Great Depression, suddenly collapse.  At that same time Merrill Lynch took shelter under the wings of Bank of America and AIG was taken over by the government.  Most recently announced was the take over of Washington Mutual (WaMu) by JP Morgan. All of these events have led and contributed to our current economic crisis and it is now in the hands of legislators to do what is best for the American people.

Today, I released a statement saying that I am OPPOSED to the Bush Administrations $700 billion proposal. I am opposed to any plan that allows Wall Street executives to walk away with millions of taxpayer dollars accumulating in their bank accounts. This plan cannot and should not be a taxpayer funded bailout. Private companies will have to carry the financial burden in any rescue plan that I will support.

Over the last three days I have received over 500 phone calls and emails from you, my constituents, regarding the Bush Administrations proposal. I believe that all congressional action must be centered on protecting those who have done the right thing, those who took responsible home loans and have worked so hard to keep up with their obligations as the faltering economy has made it harder to do so. The economic livelihood of this country is the most important issue that my colleagues and I will take up and as such I feel it is vital to hear from all of my constituents. I urge you all to comment on this blog posting, call any of my offices, or email me and let me know your thoughts on the proposed financial market rescue plan.