Nebraska dairy farmer flies to Washington to oppose bailout plan

Published Monday September 29, 2008
Nebraska dairy farmer flies to Washington to oppose bailout plan
BY JOSEPH MORTON
WORLD-HERALD BUREAU
[link to www.omaha.com]



WASHINGTON — A phone call just wasn't enough for David Wetzel.

The dairy farmer from Page, Neb., said that he needed to urge the state's congressional delegation personally to oppose a $700 billion economic bailout plan.

So he drove from his home in Holt County in northeast Nebraska to Omaha late Sunday, then caught a flight to Washington at 6 a.m. today.

In the hours before the House voted on the proposal, Wetzel, 44, was making the rounds of Capitol Hill offices, explaining his objections to Nebraska lawmakers.

He found a fairly friendly reception for his arguments.

Nebraska Reps. Jeff Fortenberry, Adrian Smith and Lee Terry, as well as western Iowa Rep. Steve King, voted against the proposal, although the vote was being held open at midday in case members changed their minds. All are Republicans.

In overall voting by midday, Republicans were running 2-to-1 against the bill.

Their offices were deluged with calls last week. Terry's office said 350 calls had come in by Friday and more poured in over the weekend.

At first, every call was against the plan. That shifted to a more even balance by the end of the week as callers expressed concern about their retirement investments and job security.

Smith's office had heard from 430 people opposed to the bailout and 45 in support of it.

Fortenberry's office had received more than 1,400 calls and letters on the issue. More than 1,050 of those strongly opposed the plan and 60 supported it. Another 250 or more said some action might be necessary but objected to the specifics of the latest bill.

Wetzel told the congressmen that government had no business getting so involved in the private market.

"We should not be investing in Wall Street," he said.

He said the plan would devalue the dollar and put a significant burden on taxpayers. He particularly objected to how quickly the plan was being pushed through. He said he could sense the peer pressure around Capitol Hill to get the deal done.

"Just don't shove it down our throats like this," he said.

Terry was talking to business representatives and economists about the deal and said some colleagues with 20 or 30 years in Congress were calling this the toughest decision of their careers.

Fortenberry, in announcing his opposition, said on the House floor this morning that potentially less expensive, more efficient alternatives to the bailout plan had not received enough consideration.

"Nebraskans and most other Americans have made responsible financial decisions. Now we are forcing them to foot the bill for the financial industrialists of Wall Street who created this mess for Main Street and perhaps we have not addressed the underlying fundamental problems," Fortenberry said.

Three of the four senators from Iowa and Nebraska were still reviewing the proposal this morning, but Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., said he would vote for it.

"It will not solve all the problems," said Hagel, who serves on the Senate Banking Committee, which has been involved in the negotiations on the proposal. "However, it will be important in helping our markets regain new confidence, which is the essence of economic stability."

Sen. Ben Nelson, D-Neb., said he had heard from more Nebraskans on the bailout than perhaps any other issue during his eight years in the Senate.

Nelson said the new proposal has several "essential provisions" not included in the original.

"The bill adopts the incremental spending approach I believe is necessary to give Congress the authority to pull the plug if the plan isn't working, or if the full $700 billion is not needed to get the markets moving again," Nelson said.