WASHINGTON — Two U.S. House members from Colorado who voted against a $700 billion economic-stabilization bill wouldn’t say Thursday what they think about the revised version passed in the Senate.
Of the two other Colorado lawmakers who voted no, one remained firmly opposed, while the other seemed unlikely to switch when the House considers the plan, possibly as soon as today.
“There’s no question that some of the things in the bill themselves are good,” said Eric Wortman, spokesman for Rep. John Salazar, a Manassa Democrat who voted no. “The problem is they took a $700 billion bill and added more costs to it. One of John’s chief concerns was the sheer size of the bill.”
Salazar hasn’t made up his mind but has “serious reservations,” Wortman said.
Other legislators who rejected the bill were Republicans Doug Lamborn of Colorado Springs and Marilyn Musgrave of Fort Morgan, and Democrat Mark Udall of Eldorado Springs.
Udall, who is in a heated battle for a Senate seat, hasn’t made up his mind how he will vote, said his spokeswoman, Heather Fox. She declined to say what Udall thought about provisions the Senate added or how he would decide.
“He is still reviewing the bill and talking to folks,” Fox said.
Musgrave spokesman Joseph Brettell said she “hasn’t seen a final copy of the bill” and that she hoped it would contain certain principles.
Musgrave announced Thursday that she was uniting with three other congresswomen who voted against the bill to back changes that include increasing oversight of Wall Street, reforming government-sponsored entities such as mortgage backers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, changing the rules that require companies to list their assets at current market value, and possibly requiring Wall Street to buy insurance on mortgage-backed securities.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday, however, that making changes to the bill would slow down passage and that “time is of the essence.”
Lamborn said he plans to vote no again, saying the bill still puts taxpayer dollars at risk and that “there are earmarks in (the new bill) that are not good.”
Yes votes came from Republican Tom Tancredo of Littleton and Democrats Diana DeGette of Denver and Ed Perlmutter of Golden.
Tancredo said he will still vote yes, and representatives for DeGette and Perlmutter said they would probably vote yes.
“The overarching need to stabilize the economy,” Tancredo said, “is much more significant” than the problems with the bill.
The House probably has the votes to pass the economic-stabilization bill, Lamborn said.
“I just know through the grapevine that some of the things that were added in the Senate version are appealing to people in the House who voted no,” Lamborn said.
Anne C. Mulkern: 202-662-8907 or amulkern@denverpost.com
