Walz Statement on Financial Crisis

Last night, Congressional leaders from both sides of the aisle met with financial leaders in the Bush Administration. The details of this urgent bailout are still being finalized.

Today, Congressman Walz issued the following statement regarding the current situation:

"Last night, the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, the Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Secretary of the Treasury briefed Congressional leaders on a plan to put out the fire in America's financial markets. The plan has yet to be finalized, but I believe that the actions Congress will take in the next several days will provide the stability necessary to restore confidence in our economy.

"After we put out the fire, we will move to make sure this never happens again. Markets work best when there are fair rules and referees on the field. Over the past eight years, special interests have tied the hands of our referees and re-written the rules to suit their own interests and that has led to the situation we're in today. We need to restore a level playing field, put the referees back in business, and rewrite the rules in the best interest of the American public.

"The American people want to know that, whatever steps Congress takes, we will restore responsibility and accountability to Wall Street. They want to be reassured that no one will get rich off of taxpayer-funded bailouts. And most importantly, they want to know how and why this is happening and how this bailout will help the middle class families who are really hurting right now. Americans have every right to demand these things of our government and in the coming days, I will stand with them in demanding these measures be in place.

"When we all work together and put aside partisanship, we can restore the public's confidence that if you work hard, you and your children and your grandchildren can achieve and enjoy the American dream."

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