Dear Mr. Tokyem,
Thank you for contacting me regarding the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP).
I voted against H.R. 384, the TARP Reform and Accountability Act, which passed the House 260 to 166 on January 21, 2009. The legislation will place taxpayers on the hook for an additional $350 billion investment for a Treasury program that has been managed with little transparency, no accountability, and in a way inconsistent with how it was sold to Congress.
Signed into law last fall, TARP funds were intended to buy "toxic assets" to help unlock the credit markets at the center of the financial crisis. Instead, the Treasury Department utilized funds to help financial institutions acquire other banks, additional funds went to the auto companies, and still more taxpayer money is unaccounted for.
The time for bailouts is over. This money doesn't belong to the government - it's pried from the pockets of the American people and has been used in an unacceptable spendthrift manner.
I believe the better solution is to support families through tax relief and provide economic relief for American businesses and entrepreneurs who create jobs and spur economic growth. The United States of America did not tax, spend and borrow its way into becoming the largest most successful economy in the history of the world. Rather, the American people created this success because they have been free to reap the rewards of their own hard work and ingenuity.
Be assured that I will keep your comments in mind as I continue to monitor this situation.
For more information about my work in Congress or to send me an electronic message, please visit the 21st District's website, http://lamarsmith.
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