Democrats and Republicans in Congress spent Thursday blaming each other for the crisis in the financial markets but have no specific plans to vote on any legislation that would address the problem before the House and Senate are slated to adjourn in the next two weeks.
The House is set to adjourn Sept. 26 and the Senate a week later. The limited time frame makes it less likely the two chambers will have time to construct and agree upon any kind of bill aimed at helping to correct the problems that have led to the crisis in the financial markets. Even an ambitious plan to try to pass a $50 billion economic stimulus package has been whittled down to a few provisions that will likely be inserted into a spending measure, and an oil drilling bill that passed the House on Tuesday seems unlikely to clear the Senate this year.
Instead, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday that three committees will remain up and running after the rest of Congress leaves town to “investigate the Bush administration’s mismanagement of financial market regulation, how it led to this crisis and what solutions Congress can act upon.”
Pelosi added, “We hope we can work together with the administration on this, that they will have some positive initiatives.”
The hearings will also examine the potential effect on the federal budget of the government’s $85 billion bailout of AIG, Pelosi said.
Pelosi acknowledged that the public likely wants Congress to act on the financial situation before adjourning for the year, but said there is little she can do without the Bush administration taking the initiative first.
“We would hope to have something as soon as we can have it, but we have to know what that is,” Pelosi said.
Bush today did not announce any specifics on new action beyond the dramatic steps the administration has taken in recent days to rescue AIG as well as mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
“The American people can be sure we will continue to act to strengthen and stabilize our financial markets and improve investor confidence,” Bush said in a statement.
Republican lawmakers criticized Bush over the administration’s bailout strategy. A group of House fiscal conservatives sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, warning him, “the federal government cannot afford to be the automatic savior for every company facing financial peril.”
House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, complained Thursday that Bush has left GOP lawmakers in the dark about its handling of the financial crisis. Boehner cancelled a morning meeting of House Republicans about the problem after the administration “refused to send anyone up” to talk to members.
