THE Bailout bill goes down . . . so who's got the power?

Photo Credit: Spencer Platt/Getty

By l.t. Dravis

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Monday, September 29, 2008 – The House of Representatives voted down the $700 billion bailout bill by a vote of 228 to 205, taking the wind out of the Bush administration’s sails and seriously questioning the power and authority of the House of Representatives.

The democracy we’ve known and loved for more than two centuries has been forever changed.

Why?

Because the power of the people has finally been felt.

Too many voters sent too many very clear messages to too many representatives to not be heard.

And the lesson is?

The people have the power to set not only the direction of legislation but also the tone of the debate in this country.

Don’t believe it?

Look at the political weight that was thrown behind the bailout bill.

The entire leadership of the Democratic Party has been promoting the bailout to anyone and everyone who would listen for the past ten days . . . yet it failed.

The Bush administration has put more time and energy into warning us about the dire consequences of the failure of this bill than they ever did with those yellow-orange-red alerts they used to throw around for whatever reason . . . yet it failed.

Democratic and Republican leaders argued before the public that the bailout was essential to the very survival of the American economy . . . yet it failed.

Before the vote today, the White House, including George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, and Josh Bolton were on the phone, twisting arms, trying to convince representatives on both sides of the aisle to support the bill . . . yet it failed.

During the 40 minute long roll call, several representatives on the House floor were shouting warnings about how the Dow Jones Average was dropping precipitously . . . yet it failed.

The American people let their representatives know that they didn’t trust their government, especially President Bush and Vice-President Cheney, enough to support the bailout.

And their representatives listened.

Talk about the power of the people.

Let’s hope we never forget today . . . the day the democracy we’ve known and loved for more than two centuries has been forever changed.

How about that?

Copyright © 2008 by l.t. Dravis. All rights reserved.

If you have questions, comments, or concerns, Email me at LTDAssociates@msn.com (goes right to my desk) and since I personally answer every Email, I look forward to hearing from you soon.