By James Gerstenzang Times Staff Writer
WASHINGTON -- As President Bush urged Congress today to act quickly on his $700-billion plan to rescue troubled financial institutions without adding new provisions, a key Democrat said the administration had agreed to include new help for homeowners facing the prospect of foreclosure on their mortgages.
Rep. Barney Frank, chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, who has been at the center of behind-the-scenes negotiations between congressional Democrats and Treasury Secretary Henry A. Paulson, reported that "the foreclosure piece is agreed on."
"There was Republican congressional opposition, but the administration accepted it," the Massachusetts Democrat told reporters this afternoon.
The reported agreement would expand the president's plan beyond its focus on helping major financial institutions recover from the financial meltdown rumbling through global markets.
Democrats have insisted that, while emergency help for the financial system -- potentially the biggest government bailout in U.S. history -- must be approved quickly, the measure must also include help for ordinary Americans, including those threatened with loss of their homes.
The Democrats also want more congressional oversight of the bailout and added protections for taxpayers, who are expected to be on the hook for the cost -- estimated at $700 billion or more.
Frank's report suggested that even as the administration called for quick approval of legislation close to what Bush and his top advisors advanced last week -- and the focus of negotiations between the Treasury Department and congressional leaders today -- the White House was willing to make adjustments.
Among the proposals still unresolved: A call by Frank and his Senate counterpart, Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.), to somehow force companies that were being rescued by the federal government to limit the compensation packages given to their top executives.
As the financial markets were opening, Bush issued a written statement demanding quick action by Congress.
"It would not be understandable if members of Congress sought to use this emergency legislation to pass unrelated provisions, or to insist on provisions that would undermine the effectiveness of the plan," the president said.
He added:
