The nationwide "tea parties" to protest the Obama administration's approach to the economic crisis by channeling the spirit of protest that sparked the Boston Tea Party are scheduled for Wednesday across the country.
(ABC News Photo Illustration)
Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden, one of the few Democrats in the Senate to oppose the initial TARP legislation, said there is a tremendous amount of "voter angst" with regard to TARP. Many people, he said, view the bailout as an enormous "bait and switch."
He said the Bush administration did not follow through on assurances it made regarding oversight. But he dodged questions about whether assurances from the Obama administration would be sufficient to secure the money.
Those concerns will certainly affect the crafting of the stimulus package.
Many Democrats initially expressed skepticism with Obama's recipe for the stimulus package, saying it focuses too much on tax measures and not enough on direct investment by the government in aid to states and infrastructure spending on things like roads and bridges.
Several of the Democratic skeptics appeared satisfied that they have convinced Obama to drop the $3,000 tax credit he had planned for businesses that hire new employees. But dropping that provision will surely frustrate some Republicans who had voiced optimism about the stimulus plan last week.
"I'm not going to get into details, but all along, the view has been that nobody had a monopoly on good ideas in this legislation," Summers told reporters after his meeting with Democrats.
ABC News' Huma Khan, Dean Norland, Sunlen Miller and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Do you have more information about this topic? If so, please click here to contact the editors of ABC News.
