Republicans to urge Geithner to oppose Greece bailout

House Republicans will send a letter to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner urging him to stop U.S. involvement in the bailout of Greece. 

To keep the country from sliding into default, the European Union and International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreed to lend Greece $144 billion. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.), vice chairwoman of the Republican Conference, argues the U.S. will use taxpayer dollars to shoulder most of that burden. 

{mosads}”The United States is one of the largest contributors to the IMF and in this agreement it means more taxpayer dollars being spent to help bail out [a] European country,” she said, adding: “I really question whether or not we should be now spending U.S. taxpayers to bail out countries like Greece, and there’s other European countries that may follow.” 

Countries like Portugal and Spain may soon need a bailout, according to the congresswoman. 

The letter states that the IMF will bail Greece out by tapping into an account called New Arrangements to Borrow, into which the U.S. deposited $100 billion using funds from the fiscal 2009 war funding supplemental bill.

“The legislation was ultimately opposed by 202 members of the House of Representatives, in part because of fears that taxpayer dollars would be used to finance an international bailout slush fund,” the letter states. “It now appears that the IMF is on the verge of turning those fears into reality.”

McMorris Rodgers claims the bailout out Greece will “create a moral hazard that gets Americans more involved in the gathering storm of European bailouts.”