US GOP Lawmaker Wants To Force Vote On Govt's Bailout Of GM
03 Juni 2009 - 9:10AM
Dow Jones News
A Republican senator plans to attempt to force a vote on the
Obama administration's bailout of General Motors Corp. (GM) by
requiring the Treasury to allow lawmakers to vote on any money
doled out through the Troubled Asset Relief Program.
Sen. Mike Johanns, R-Neb., plans to introduce legislation which
would backdate the requirement for Treasury to seek Congress'
approval for any spending through the financial rescue plan to May
29, before the administration finalized terms for GM's
bankruptcy.
On Monday, the federal government announced that it could spend
up to $50 billion to support the troubled car maker as it goes into
bankruptcy protection, and then hold a majority stake in the firm
once it completes a bankruptcy re-organization.
Johanns said his primary motivation for introducing the measure
is due to the fact that the administration is spending tens of
billions of dollars that was intended to rescue financial firms
impacted by the Wall Street meltdown with no formal input from
lawmakers. The requirement would apply to all Treasury financial
transactions that involve the federal government receiving
preferential or common shares in a private company in exchange for
lending taxpayer money. It would continue to allow the Treasury to
use other instruments such as equity warrants to protect public
investments in companies.
Johanns said that he has been skeptical of federal government
interventions through the various programs created by first the
Bush and then continued or expanded by the Obama administrations.
He said had Obama told lawmakers in January when he sought the
release of the second tranche of $350 billion through the TARP
program that within a matter of months the federal government would
have a majority stake in GM, he wouldn't have gotten a single vote
to release the funds. He plans to add the measure as an amendment
to legislation currently before the Senate that would instruct the
Food and Drug Administration to being regulating the tobacco
industry.
Even though there is no connection between the two issues, if
there is sufficient support from lawmakers, it could be added to
the tobacco regulation bill.
Johanns said he has spoken to several Republican Senate
colleagues about his legislation. Senate Democratic leadership
would have to allow a vote on the amendment in order for it to be
brought forward. Votes on amendments to the tobacco bill aren't
likely to begin until Wednesday evening or Thursday morning.
-By Corey Boles, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-6601;
corey.boles@dowjones.com