Why Won’t Democrats pass the Bailout Bill Without the Republicans?

 Democrats have the majority in the house and senate. Democrats also have the votes that they need to pass the Wall Street bailout bill without the support of the house Republicans. If this is as urgent as the president and other politicians are saying than why don’t the Democrats just pass the bill on their own? Why do they need to drag the Republicans in? Why don’t they just do it on their own so that they can get all of the credit?

 Perhaps this poll is the reason why. Most Americans are against the president’s bailout bill.

Just 30 percent of Americans say they support Bush’s package, according to an Associated Press-Knowledge Networks poll released as White House and congressional leaders struggled to rescue the plan after House Republicans rebelled against it. Despite the president’s pleas that the package is urgently needed to prevent an economic meltdown, 45 percent say they oppose Bush’s proposal while 25 percent said they are undecided.

  Democrats are afraid to “go it alone” on this bill. They see the polls and they know that the American people are against bailing out Wall Street. Yet they are afraid that because they have been a do-nothing congress for the last two years that they will once again be labeled a do-nothing congress on this issue unless they do “something”.

 That is where their dilemma lies. They desperately want to appear as though they have done something, but they aren’t willing to risk losing the American people who are against this bill. So they are trying to come up with a bill that will drag the Republicans back towards the bill.

 That is because they don’t want to take the blame alone once this bailout is followed by the next one. They don’t want to take the blame alone when this bailout rises well above one trillion dollars. They want to be able to at least say that it was a bipartisan effort, that both parties are to blame for the failure of this bailout.

 Democrats could pass this bill if they wanted to, but they don’t want to. If this issue was as urgent as the president, the politicians, and the media wants us to believe than the Democrats would pass this bill without the Republicans. It would be a political goldmine. But they are afraid because this is not a political goldmine and Democrats are afraid to hold a position contrary to the will of the American people alone.

 Democrats want to so “something” but they know that this isn’t the “right thing.” They want to drag the Republicans down with them, but the house Republicans aren’t biting.