Lawmakers are working fast and furious to craft a rescue plan that will save the economy, our beat-up stock markets and exchange traded funds (ETFs) – at least, that’s the hope.
Reports are that a deal is close, but there is still haggling taking place over a few of the larger components of the package, including how to phase in the cost of the plan without affecting the markets, reports Julie Hirschfeld Davis for the Associated Press.
The core of the plan involves the idea that the government would buy up the bad assets of these shaky financial firms to keep them from going under, and thus avoiding what could be a severe recession.
President Bush last night pushed for quick action, says James Rowley for Bloomberg. Without the plan, Bush said, the U.S. economy would grind to a halt: foreclosures would rise, Wall Street would suffer further losses and millions of Americans could lose their jobs.