White House: House bailout votes switching to yes

The White House said that after President Bush called more than three-dozen House members Wednesday and Thursday, at least some have agreed to change their votes on the financial rescue package. 

The Senate passed a modified financial rescue plan Wednesday night by a wide margin: 74 to 25. The House defeated the measure on Monday 205-228. The House is scheduled to vote again on Friday afternoon.

{mosads}Before the House voted Monday White House spokesman Tony Fratto said he was confident the bill would pass. On Thursday Fratto amended that, saying he was "fairly confident.” He also joked he had "touched my finger on the hot stove" and wouldn't make that mistake again.

Fratto said the president's renewed confidence was the result of the changes to the bill made in the Senate, and the palpable sense of crisis that was "crystallized" by Monday's market nosedive after the package’s defeat surprised many on the Hill and on Wall Street.

"I think that clarified things for a lot of members," Fratto said. "I think some of them weren't sure we were really in a crisis."

Fratto said the president has personally heard from members who voted against the bill who now say they will vote in favor of it.

Fratto declined to say how much the president, whose political strength has been called into serious question throughout the financial crisis, had to do with those changed minds.

The Dow dropped a record of 777 points Monday after the House, largely behind the objections of Republicans, torpedoed the bill. The modified bill passed by the Senate includes an increase in Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation coverage of bank deposits, from $100,000 to $250,000, as well as extensions of popular tax credits and a freeze on the expansion of the Alternative Minimum Tax — all in an effort to coax more votes from House GOPers.

Fratto said the "market reaction" that is spurring some members to change their votes might have been "something their constituents need to see, more than members."

Fratto said that in addition to Bush, Vice President Cheney and other administration officials have continued to lobby skeptical lawmakers. Fratto described the conversations as "positive and productive."

The president met with manufacturers from around the country Thursday morning, hearing firsthand how the credit crunch that has resulted from the Wall Street meltdown has impacted them.

In remarks after the meeting, Bush thanked the Senate for passing the bill and urged the House to follow suit.

"A lot of people are watching the House of Representatives now to determine whether or not they will be able to act positively on a bill that has been improved," Bush said. "People say, 'What do you mean by that?' Well, the insurance for the FDIC goes up to $250,000. That's an improvement to the legislation — not only for banks but for credit unions, as well.

"And so I'm talking to people who are, you know, who come from the heartland, that understand what's taking place in our economy today; people who understand that the House of Representatives needs to pass this piece of legislation."