Hensarling’s choice

Rep. Jeb Hensarling (Texas), who is the chairman of the conservative Republican Study Committee (RSC), is no fan of the Bush administration’s bailout plan.

The RSC is seeking major changes, such as transitioning Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to private companies and incorporating a “market-based” approach. But the RSC, being in the House minority, is unlikely to get what it wants.

Hensarling and his group’s 100-plus members will have to vote on a package that will mostly likely be a compromise between Paulson’s plan and what congressional Democrats are pushing for.

For many conservatives, the vote on the rescue plan is a defining moment. The Republican Party lost its majority for many reasons, one of them being that government spending skyrocketed on its watch.

Some Republicans on Capitol Hill have been outspoken on Paulson’s plan, including Sens. Richard Shelby (Ala.) and Jim Bunning (Ky.).

Hensarling said, “It defies common sense to pass a potential trillion-dollar bailout bill without having a rational and deliberate conversation about other potential alternatives and remedies.”

The bottom line for conservatives is that $700 billion is a lot of money, especially for something that may or may not work.

Five years ago, conservatives were faced with another difficult choice: expand Medicare with a huge new prescription drug benefit, or reject the bill that President Bush had been promising for years.

Hensarling reluctantly voted for that bill during a House vote that was held open for three hours. Twenty-five House Republicans rejected it.

Then-House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R), Hensarling’s colleague in the Texas delegation, strongly urged the GOP conference to vote for it — as did Bush and Vice President Cheney.

While the prescription drug program is popular with seniors, some conservatives still regret their votes that night.

DeLay has left Congress, but Bush and Cheney are ratcheting up the pressure for congressional Republicans to get in line on the rescue plan.

Yet Bush’s approval ratings are nowhere near where they were in late 2003 — and thus his lobbying efforts are not resonating.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has indicated the effort to pass the financial bill must be bipartisan. If it doesn’t work, then voters will blame both parties, not just the Democrats and an administration that will soon be packing up.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.), who rallied support for the Medicare drug bill, said Tuesday that any lawmaker who votes for the Bush administration’s bailout proposal will face defeat in November, calling the plan “a dead loser.”

The rescue package has taken many turns, though at this point, it is hard to see how a majority of congressional Republicans will vote yes.

Hensarling surely will not.