Main Street Gets Its Revenge

Main Street and the common man got its revenge on Wall Street, the symbol of the financial institutions that weigh so heavily on the lives of Americans. The House of Representatives rejected the bailout plan on Monday, Sept. 29 by a vote of 229 to 205. This is a demonstration of the simmering anger many citizens have towards irresponsible bankers who are driven by a fanatical search for profit and are now coming to the powerful public for help for the runaway economy they created.

Members of Congress have been overloaded with messages entreating them to refuse what looked like blackmail. Five weeks before the renewal of the Chamber for which they campaign for reelection every two years, the pressure was strong.

In order to stand up to a largely justified indignation, there must be some policy makers capable to make themselves heard. That isn’t the case with George Bush, a president at the end of his term whose approval is now at the lowest ever since polls have been conducted. Dick Cheney, the vice-president, is also at the end of the line. From the side of the Democrats, who hold majorities in Congress, the speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, has warned that they couldn’t guarantee the outcome. She has been disowned by her Democratic colleagues in California, where almost half of the votes were against it.

The two Presidential candidates, who tepidly supported the plan, hadn’t yet been approved by their respective parties. While almost 60 percent of Democrats have put forth a ‘yes’ vote, two thirds of Republicans voted against the measure. John McCain, who suspended his campaign to put himself in the first line of negotiation, was weakened by divisions within his own party. But a good number of Republicans haven’t followed Barack Obama.

American policy makers have no other choice other than to unite to take up an unpopular solution against the threat of the economy’s collapse. That’s not easy during election time. But for those who lead or hope to lead the United States, it’s the moment to show if they are still capable of the world « leadership » to which they subscribe.