Neither John McCain nor Barack Obama could claim leadership on the bailout plan, whose rejection by rank-and-file lawmakers yesterday sent markets spiralling downwards.
McCain, the GOP presidential nominee who returned to the capital late last week amid great fanfare, claimed to play a decisive role in bringing the parties together.
But he did no more to reel in Republican votes than did President George W. Bush. Not only did two-thirds of House Republicans vote against the bailout, but so did all eight members of the Arizona delegation, which includes four Republicans and four Democrats. The measure was defeated 228 to 205.
On the Democratic side, Obama also gave tepid support to the measure, but clearly did not expend any political capital to press for its passage.
Eight of the 13 members of the Illinois delegation voted against it, including Democrats Jesse Jackson Jr., the national co-chair of his campaign. Four of the nay votes were Republican; four were Democrats.
Jackson called the bill “a tremendous improvement over the legislation proposed by the Bush Administration last week,” but said he was voting against because he said “it still falls short of what is needed to shore up the economy, protect taxpayers and promote economic growth.”
More members of the Congressional Black Caucus, whose heavily black districts include many of Obama’s most ardent supporters, opposed the bill than supported it. A total of 21 Black Caucus members voted against the measure, arguing the bill didn’t do enough to help those struggling to stay in their homes.
In addition to Jackson, they included John Conyers of Michigan, Elijah Cummings and Donna Edwards of Maryland, Sheila Jackson-Lee of Texas, John Lewis of Georgia, Bennie Thompson of Mississippi and Bobby Rush of Illinois.
In the end, then, amid broad public anger, the bill was defeated by a coalition of liberals and conservatives, with incitement from groups on both ends of the political spectrum.
The Club for Growth, a conservaive free-market oriented group, had warned Republican lawmakers that it would count a vote in favor of the legislation against lawmakers seeking the group’s support. Club for Growth is viewed with apprehension by many Republicans because it has supported challengers against GOP incumbents.
Left-leaning groups, meanwhile, launched petitions and staged protests. The liberal MoveOn.org aired a television ad on cable television blaming the financial crisis on Republican presidential candidate John McCain and his allies.
“This is one of those scenarios where nobody really wanted to do it,” said House Republican Whip Roy Blunt of Missouri, who played a lead role in the negotiations.
House members voting against the bailout package:
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