White House: Bailout Plan Had Been Drawn Up Over Many Months

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Bush himself continues to do little to explain his plan, and he has refused to be questioned about it.

White House Dispatches Team to Push Economic Bill

September 23, 2008, 10:42 a.m. By Keith KofflerRoll Call Staff
The White House today is drumming up extraordinary pressure on Congress to approve its plan to enact a $700 billion mortgage bailout fund, suggesting the markets cannot wait much longer and dispatching Vice President Cheney and other top officials up Pennsylvania Avenue to jawbone lawmakers.
Cheney, White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten and presidential adviser Ed Gillespie are meeting this morning with House Republican conservatives, where a rebellion is brewing against the size and questionable free market credentials of the administration proposal.
Cheney will later gather with GOP Senators at the regular Tuesday lunch. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, who collaborated in drawing up the proposal, are testifying this morning on Capitol Hill in an effort to defend their handiwork.
But Bush himself continues to do little to explain his plan, and he has refused to be questioned about it.
Asked during a telephone briefing for reporters today whether Bush was speaking with lawmakers, White House Deputy Press Secretary Tony Fratto said the president is aware of their concerns but that Paulson is the salesman.
Paulson said Congress and the administration must move rapidly. >>>cont

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Henry Paulson: Taxpayers Are Already On The Hook (VIDEO)

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, facing a barrage of questions from Congress, seemed to get frustrated at the Senate banking committee's questions about taxpayers, perhaps implying that he, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and others in the administration didn't have the taxpayers' best interest at heart.
Paulson testily responded, "When you ask about the taxpayers being on the hook -- guess what: They're already on the hook."