Terry’s vote to relax regulation helped cause Wall Street woes

Omaha, Neb.- Jim Esch said in a statement today that Congress and Wall Street executives are at fault for recent economic woes. Esch criticized his opponent Lee Terry for his support of a plan that asks American citizens to foot the bill for a bailout that only benefits Wall Street.

“My opponent supports a plan that will give Wall Street a blank check from struggling American families to bail out those who recklessly gambled with our economic future. It does nothing to ensure that tax payers aren’t stuck with the bill. Quite honestly, that is alarming to me,” Esch said. “Congress needs a responsible plan that makes sure the American tax payer is repaid in full.”

In addition to repayment provisions, Esch called for a plan that includes investigations of and regulations for Wall Street executives. Terry voted to relax federal regulations that would have protected the market from the current economic crisis.

“We need to hold those responsible for this crisis accountable. Congress turned a blind eye over the past 10 years, and Wall Street executives were allowed to operate with relaxed federal oversight,” Esch said. “The same people who got us into this financial mess are now asking the American tax payer to bail them out of it, with nothing more than a promise of ‘Trust us, we know what we are doing.’ Why should we trust those who created the problem to fix it? As your Congressman, I will work to restore oversight, something my opponent has disregarded.”

Source:
H.R. 10 Financial Services Act, Roll no. 276 7/1/99