Unsolicited response

I saw this on my e-mail yesterday and it made me go, “hmmmmmm….” But then I realized why I got it, and I’ll fill you in after I reveal the note.

Dear Mr. Swartz:

Thank you for writing to me about the Bush Administration’s proposal to bail out the financial industry. It’s good to hear from you.

There’s no question that we are in a credit crisis. People who have saved for their retirement, been faithful in paying their mortgage, and worked hard to pay for college are wondering, ‘What is going on?’

They’ve watched Wall Street executives pay themselves lavish salaries. They’ve watched irresponsible lending practices. They’ve watched casino economics, gambling on risky investment mechanisms. Now those very same Americans who’ve worked hard and played by the rules are being asked to pay the bill for those who didn’t.

Congress must act promptly to restore confidence and stability in the economy. But I will not be stampeded into voting for the Bush Administration bill. During the last seven years, every time there’s a crisis, they generate fear and they generate bad ideas. This three-page bill gives the Secretary of the Treasury unlimited power to intervene in our financial markets without any review by Congress, agencies, or courts. It cannot be rubber stamped by the Congress.

At the minimum, the plan must be limited and temporary – not open-ended. There can’t be any golden parachutes that reward executives for their excesses and their recklessness. No blank checks. There also must be a plan for those who have been hit hardest by the mortgage crisis.

Knowing of your views is very helpful to me. I will keep them in mind as the Senate continues to debate the President’s economic plan.

Thanks again for getting in touch. Please let me know if I can be of assistance to you in the future.

Sincerely,
Barbara A. Mikulski
United States Senator

So I was sitting there wracking my brain about why I would get that note and then realized that it was sent on my behalf by the National Taxpayers Union – remember this post? Perhaps having that few signers made a little more impact because the note looked more original.

And, truth be told, this is one of the rare moments I agree with our state’s senior Senator – to a point. Yes, anything by Congress regarding this issue should be limited and temporary. But that’s true of almost any issue, yet our Senators have continued to regulate and seek to tax our economy so that there’s no incentive left for entrepreneurship, unless you count further socialization of our society. (They had no issue with subsidizing alternative energy sources at the expense of oil companies, for example.) I too am hoping cooler heads prevail on this issue, given that Congress only has a few days before adjourning for the elections.

Now let’s talk about golden parachutes. Many of those in Congress who allowed this problem to fester for years without being addressed are also due some pretty hefty pensions once they retire (I believe Senator Mikulski is one who’s been there long enough to maximize hers.) Much like Wall Street executives, they fiddled around with taxpayer money while Rome burned too, yet no one’s talking about their failures and threatening to yank their retirement. If it’s proven that these executives committed criminal acts of fraud then they rightfully should go to prison, but there were fair negotiations between them and their companies regarding compensation. I may not like the Big Three giving in to union demands and paying people for not working but these provisions were fairly negotiated, so why should Congress question the motives of these Wall Street executives? Also it seems to me that some of those “irresponsible lending practices” were in place because Congress wished them to be. Before Senator Mikulski plays the class envy card, she should take a hard look in the mirror and see what her hand has wrought in this affair over the years.

And let me question who’s been hit hardest by the mortgage crisis? Most likely it’s those who shouldn’t have gotten mortgages in the first place; still, there’s a lot more of us who do pay on time and aren’t playing speculator than there are “victims.” Unfortunately, we will be the ones hurt the most eventually (while the scofflaws will probably be right back with hat in hand, no lesson learned) because there’s no way our nation can continue on this fiscal path without serious ramifications. It may be better to take the blow now then to wait for yet another shoe to drop.

However, having never heard from her before (or seen her in these parts, normally we just see Senator Mikulski’s Eastern Shore representative) I’m pleased she’s keeping my views in mind. Being an optimist by nature I’ll hold out that slight bit of hope we can teach an old dog new tricks.

Author: Michael

It's me from my laptop computer.