Washington, D.C. — Today, Congressman Geoff Davis voted against H.R. 3997, the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008. The 110-page legislation failed to pass in the House by a vote of 205 to 228.
Congressman Davis stated, “This bill did not adequately protect taxpayers in Kentucky and across the nation. It is not the taxpayer’s responsibility to pay for mistakes made on Wall Street. While the legislation that was considered in the House today was an improvement over the unacceptable three-page proposal offered by Secretary Paulson, it still would have given the Treasury Department unprecedented authority to intervene in the private markets.
“As your Congressman, it is my responsibility to uphold the Constitution and represent the will of Kentuckians in the Fourth District. Over the past week, I have received an overwhelming number of calls, emails and letters from constituents who demand that I oppose the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act. After weighing the final proposal and its potential ramifications carefully, I was not convinced that a $700 billion taxpayer-funded government purchase program would be the right way to help the economy nor was I convinced that it would do what we have been promised. Most importantly, it was not in the best interests of my constituency or the overall financial well-being of our nation.
“Congress must remain in Washington to examine alternatives that would provide greater protections to Americans in the heartland. Unfortunately, this proposal did not accomplish that result.”
Tomorrow, Congressman Davis will release his weekly column that will examine this proposal in additional detail.
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