Breaking down the bailout vote
Posted: Wednesday, October 01, 2008 10:33 PM by Carrie Dann
Filed Under:
Congress
From NBC's Carrie Dann
By a vote of 74-25, the Senate has approved its version of the financial recovery package that was voted down by the U.S. House on Monday. Senators
Biden,
McCain, and
Obama, as promised, returned to the Hill to vote "aye" on the measure.
On Monday afternoon, when the bailout package failed in the House, a quick glance at the roll call vote offered a fairly accurate cheat sheet to indicate the closeness of a few 2008 House races. All but eight of 38 members in tight reelection contests voted against the largely unpopular bill.
Video: The Senate voted 74-25 in favor of the economic bailout bill. What does this mean? Rachel Maddow is joined by MSNBC Congressional Correspondent Mike Viqueira.
But after a record plummet of the Dow Jones on Monday and new revisions to the bill, the Senate proved to be characteristically more measured.
Of the twenty-five lawmakers voting "no," ten are up for reelection. But of the eight sitting senators in tough races, just three voted against the bailout.
North Carolina Senator Elizabeth Dole, whose reelection race has slowly drifted from the "Likely Republican" column to a blue-leaning Toss Up, was among those voting "nay."
"While it may be easier for some in Congress to quickly pass a bill, pat themselves on the back and say they've done their part to stabilize the markets, then pack up and head home - I say we must take the time to get this right," wrote Dole in a statement. "Now is the time for careful, deliberate actions - not hasty, knee-jerk reactions. I will stand up for the taxpayers and vote no."
(Dole's opponent, Democrat Kay Hagan, released a statement after the vote to indicate that she also would have voted against the bailout.)
Republican Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi is also in a fight for reelection and also opposed the bill, with an eye towards taxpayer dollars. "At its core," he said in a written statement, "this is still the same plan that calls on taxpayers to go $700 billion further into debt in an attempt to fix this problem, while doing absolutely nothing to prevent it from happening again."
Louisiana's Mary Landrieu, who has gained in most state polls but is still considered the Senate's most vulnerable Democrat, also opposed the bill.
John Sununu of New Hampshire, Gordon Smith of Oregon, and Norm Coleman of Minnesota all voted in favor of the financial rescue package.
Senate leaders praised both presidential candidates and vice presidential candidate Joe Biden for returning to the Senate chamber from the trail to vote "aye" on the measure. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell told reporters after the vote that the candidates played a "constructive role" in hammering out the compromise.
