Public Policy

The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (EESA ) is an Act of Congress that was formally signed into law by President George W . Bush on October 3 , 2008 . Sponsored by United States House Representative Patrick Kennedy of Rhode Island , this highly contentious bill was the product of a series of legislative battles wound tightly around the aggressive interventionist policies of U .S . Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson . Marked as a bailout of the U .S . financial industry , the EESA derived from the quick collapse of billions of dollars of distressed assets held by

firms across the nation notably , mortgage-backed assets that had lost value in an early-year housing market downturn . The bailout was an infusion of up to 700 billion into the U .S . economy in an attempt to reduce the risk of credit market freezes that could lead to a deep economic depression

The crisis underpinning the eventual passage of this legislation helped to highlight the strengths and weaknesses inherent within the U .S political system , but more interestingly showed interwoven politics media , and economics having a drastic effect on the legislators during the drafting process . During the debates in Congress over the bill 's passage there were effects on legislators of both parties by the media economic news from Wall Street , and the reactions by the American public to the actions of Congress . These effects were documented in real-time in the national media as the legislation bounced between the House Senate , and the White House legislators and the President...