While You Were Watching the Debate: Arm-twisting to pass House Bailout Bill

[Hannah Bell]

Wave of House converts jump aboard bailout bill
By JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS, Associated Press Writer

27 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - A wave of House converts jumped aboard the $700 billion financial industry bailout Thursday on the eve of a make-or-break second vote, as lawmakers responded to an awakening among voters to the pain ahead of them if stability isn't restored to the tottering economy.

Black lawmakers said personal calls from Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama helped switch them from "no" to "yes." Republicans and Democrats alike said appeals from credit-starved small businessmen and the Senate's addition of $110 billion in tax breaks had persuaded them to drop their opposition.



http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/financial_meltdown

[riverdeep]

1. Obama's got a lot riding on this now.

For reasons I can't comprehend, he's taken this bill as his own. 24 hours from now, we'll be a trillion dollars poorer.