SENATE PASSES BAILOUT 74 - 25

THE UNITED STATES SENATE PASSED THE BAILOUT BILL BY A COUNT OF 74 VOTES FOR 25 VOTES AGAINST. ONE DRAW BACK THOUGH THE BILL WENT FROM 106 PAGES TO 451 PAGES, INTERESTING. ONE GOOD THING IS THE AVERAGE PERSON CAN HAVE $250,000 PROTECTED IN THE BANKS INSTEAD OF ONLY $100,000. IT GOES BACK TO THE HOUSE TO TRY AND PASS IT THERE. THE PRESSURE WILL BE ON BOTH SIDES TO PASS IT THIS TIME. THE HOUSE VOTE WILL BE FRIDAY.

Bailout passes Senate, House foes soften By JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS and CHARLES BABINGTON, Associated Press Writers OCT 1,08

WASHINGTON - After one spectacular failure, the $700 billion financial industry bailout found a second life Wednesday, winning lopsided passage in the Senate and gaining ground in the House, where Republicans opposition softened. Senators loaded the economic rescue bill with tax breaks and other sweeteners before passing it by a wide margin, 74-25, a month before the presidential and congressional elections.In the House, leaders were working feverishly to convert enough opponents of the bill to push it through by Friday, just days after lawmakers there stunningly rejected an earlier version and sent markets plunging around the globe.The measure didn't cause the same uproar in the Senate, where both parties' presidential candidates, Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama, made rare appearances to cast aye votes.The rescue package lets the government spend billions of dollars to buy bad mortgage-related securities and other devalued assets held by troubled financial institutions. If successful, advocates say, that would allow frozen credit to begin flowing again and prevent a deep recession.

Even as the Senate voted, House leaders were hunting for the 12 votes they would need to turn around Monday's 228-205 defeat. They were especially targeting the 133 Republicans who voted no.Their opposition appeared to be easing after the Senate added $110 billion in tax breaks for businesses and the middle class, plus a provision to raise, from $100,000 to $250,000, the cap on federal deposit insurance.

They were also cheering a decision Tuesday by the Securities and Exchange Commission to ease rules that force companies to devalue assets on their balance sheets to reflect the price they can get on the market.There were worries, though, that the tax breaks would cause some conservative-leaning Democrats who voted for the rescue Monday to abandon it because it would swell the federal deficit.