U.S. Senate Approves Bailout Bill

WJTV.COM
Wednesday, Oct 01, 2008 - 09:19 PM Updated: 09:34 PM

By a vote of 74 to 25 the U.S. Senate has approved the $700 billion bailout for the financial industry. The bill includes another $100 billion in tax breaks that was not included in the version the House voted down Monday.

Mississippi’s two senators voted against the bill. Senator Thad Cochran, who had not said how he would vote beforehand, voted against the measure. Senator Roger Wicker said he would go against the bill before Wednesday night’s vote. Coming up on News Channel 12 at 10 we’ll have more on the U.S. Senate’s vote.

Among there 74 senators voting for the bill were presidential nominees Barack Obama and John McCain. Vice presidential candidate Joe Biden also voted for the bill.

The U.S. House plans to vote on the revised plan Friday.

Click here to read the article on WJTV.com.

As many of you know, the Financial-bailout package failed in the U.S. House of Representatives yesterday by a vote of 228-to-205.  Due in part to the negative vote, the stock market was down significantly yesterday, and Dow suffered a record fall of 777 points. Now, it remains unclear when the House and Senate will return to consideration of a “Stabilization Bill.”  It is likely that something will be brought forward on Thursday.  However, it is not clear what will actually be included in the bill.

The lack of action by the House of Representatives yesterday leaves us uncertain about what proposals may be presented in the coming days.  Without knowing the specifics of the legislation that may be considered later this week, it is impossible to say how Senator Cochran would vote on such a plan.

Senator Cochran is carefully monitoring our current economic situation.  He believes that if signals continue to show that stability in our economy is not immediately achievable, Mississippians’ retirement plans, mortgages, and ability to pay for college could be in jeopardy. 

Please know that Senator Cochran will continue to consider options that will be in the best interest of the American taxpayer.