What should the Democrats demand for the bailout of Wall Street?

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/Vote2008/story?id=5839134&page=1

"Washington officials have decided that the country's financial crisis is too big and too urgent to fight piecemeal and are working on a massive government bailout that could cost taxpayers as much as $1 trillion.

...

"We know $500 billion or $1 trillion, that's a lot of money. And sooner or later it's going to visit the taxpayer. Sooner or later it's either going to be a debt charged to all of us to our children," (Republican) Shelby said."


If the Democrats are going to be party to this, they better:
(1) Demand far greater regulation of industry
(2) Demand higher taxes for those who will benefit from this bailout, especially those earning huge incomes or who have huge portfolios
(3) Demand severe tax penalties for corporations that move their headquarters offshore to avoid taxes
(4) Demand direct help for those in danger of losing their homes
(5) Demand substantially increased investment in areas that were damage by Katrina and Ike
(6) Establishment of a completely independent investigator to examine areas of corporate and government economic abuse

If they don't insist on those kinds of demands, then they will have sold out the American people.

The liberal community really has to get on this issue, because if Pelosi has taught us anything, she will cave easily to the Republicans.

I am enraged.

if that's not too much to ask.

As long as their interests differ, this'll keep happening. It boots nothing to try to get anyone to act against his or her interests.

Do whatever's expedient for the here-and-now - we're getting screwed on *this* one no matter what. The future however, can be planned for.

"The future however, can be planned for."

Not if you simply kick the can down the road. Even if BODs' interests were 100% aligned with those of shareholders, it is not obvious that multi-national corporation interests are aligned with those of the American public.

Since it's our money being used to bail these "free market" warriors, we must demand a deeper re-assessment of this relationship.

I'm talking about the American people. You seem to be conflating "shareholder" with "US taxpayer".

Tie pay to performance for god's sake, like any other job.

And how about having those asshats pay some percentage back to the small investor who lost everything in Fannie and Freddie, for example, where they LIED in the financial statements? All of the companies who hid their bad debt and kept it off the books owe the small investors something. They are supposed to be beholden to the stock owners, but instead, they are clearly beholden to their own pocketbooks. Prosecute.

any preferred stock holders who "got out early" need to be in jail -- all of Washington needs to be swept and investigated.

This is utter BS.

We will all strike otherwise-- what in the Hell are my tax dollars paying for right now? the cronyism and utter incompetence of these people is staggering.

OVERSIGHT AND REGULATION within reason (to be determined by anyone who is not a free market asshat moran)

we pay back our lenders. We the American Citizens should consult with an accountant to structure a system for these guys to pay us back and use the profits to finance health care, education, and retirement from this account. Because "the experts" keep saying social security will be depleated! I think they are counting on privitizing our S.S. to make their depleation predition come true.

What will REALLY enrage me will be McCain continuing to insist on these massive tax breaks for the very wealthy, who will continue to be wealthy courtesy of MY tax money.

Can you believe this shit?

directly to the taxpayers? How much would each of us get? I don't know about anyone else, but I could use the money.

if we are going to bailout the rich, investment class, they should pay higher taxes. And NOT have their taxes lowered!

"Schumer urged forming an agency to inject funds into financial companies in exchange for equity stakes and pledges to rewrite mortgages and make them more affordable. His remarks indicate momentum is building for some wider plan after the Fed and Treasury's takeovers of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and American International Group Inc. this month.

Schumer advocated a Great Depression-era Reconstruction Finance Corp. model, different from the Resolution Trust Corp.- type plan others have floated. Another RTC, which was a 1990s agency that sold devalued assets in the Savings and Loan Crisis, would ``simply transfer excessive risk to the U.S. government without addressing the plight of homeowners,'' he said."


http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=a2eqIIK6ev3U&refer=home