Ed Whitfield was one of the five Kentucky Congressmen to vote for a measure that would keep the remaining half of the $700 billion bailout in the government's hands.Whitfield, who represents western Kentucky, voted "yes" this week on a resolution that would deny the Department of Treasury the authority to spend the remaining $350 billion of the Troubled Asset Relief Program approved in October by both houses. Whitfield also voted against the measure then. John Yarmuth, a Democrat, was the only Kentucky congressman to oppose the resolution this week.
The resolution passed 270-155 with bipartisan support. House members from both sides of the aisle have been under pressure from constituents to oppose releasing the money. Whitfield, a Hopkinsville Republican, argued, among other things, that the initial package did not hold financial institutions accountable enough to the American people.
“While I believe that the government must do what it can to create new jobs and revitalize our economy, we must have proper oversight measures in place before moving forward with any new spending,” he said in a news release. “The careless manner in which the first half of these TARP funds was spent demonstrates that we simply cannot hand the Treasury Department a blank check at taxpayers’ expense."
Despite passage of the resolution, the money is effectively made available to President Barack Obama's administration because the Senate last week shot down the resolution.
