Bingaman would have voted for bailout bill

U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman said today that he would have voted for the proposed $700 billion bailout proposal the House rejected on Monday.

“I believe there is a need to recapitalize our banking system in order to head off failure by more financial institutions, and that was what this package was intended to do,” Bingaman, D-N.M., said today in an interview with radio reporters.

Bingaman said the bill included an important provision requiring “that taxpayers be allowed to share in the profit or the improved economic condition of these companies down the road” since taxpayers would be investing the money up front to help the companies out of financial hardship. He called that and other provisions in the bill presented to the House on Monday “substantial improvements” over the original proposal, and said “it would have been a prudent thing for us to go ahead with it.”

Bingaman said it’s important that Congress keep working toward a bill that can pass. The Senate doesn’t plan to vote on a bill until after the House approves it.

The senator said he believes the United States is already in a recession, “and the real issue is how deep is that recession and how long will it continue.” He said a bill like the proposal the House killed on Monday “would help us to make it a shorter and a less-severe recession.”

“But I expect that the economic growth of the country will continue to slow even if we pass this package in some form in the next week or so,” Bingaman said.