Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., has introduced a simple, one-page bill with significant ramifications — sunsetting the controversial Troubled Asset Relief Program when it’s set to expire at the end of December.

“Now is the time to end this program to ensure that additional taxpayer dollars are not wasted since TARP has devolved into a slush fund for the administration,” he said.

“I think the American people are weary of the bailouts and rightly so,” Thune said in a conference call on Wednesday.

He said Congress created TARP to help relieve the credit crisis that threatened the economy a year ago. Instead of using the program for its intended purpose, the Treasury Department has bought ownership interests in auto manufacturers, insurance companies and hundreds of financial institutions, he said.

After failing to get a response from a letter Thune and 38 of his colleagues sent to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner in September — urging that he not extend TARP beyond 2009 — he introduced the bill on Tuesday.

More than $317 billion remains unobligated out of the $700 billion program, according to the special inspector general for TARP.

The original legislation allows Geithner to extend the program until Oct. 3, 2010, without additional congressional consent.

In a separate conference call, Sen. Tim Johnson, D-S.D., defended the program.

“I don’t think a hard and fast cutoff date is needed at this time,” he said.

But Thune said TARP has become nothing more than a slush fund allowing the Treasury Department “to pick winners and losers.”

The original concept was to create a program to avoid an imminent financial meltdown. It succeeded in restoring stability to the financial markets, he said.

“Then it morphed into something broader than that,” Thune said.

Any funds not expended —as well as money paid back to the treasury — should be applied to the federal debt rather than being recycled and spent on other projects, he said. If necessary, Congress can always reactivate TARP, he said.

“I just think that the debt is a ticking time bomb,” Thune said.

Meanwhile, the health care debate, shifting now to the Senate after House passage of its version, took a major step Wednesday when Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada and the Democratic caucus met late in the day to discuss his proposal to meet the president’s goal of expanding coverage while not impacting the deficit.

Sources said the Congressional Budget Office estimates the bill to cost $849 billion over 10 years.

Thune is critical of provisions that would spike taxes for small businesses, making it more difficult for them to stay successful.

Johnson was looking forward to getting more specifics from Reid in the afternoon caucus.

“I favor kicking the ball down the field because this is the only way to go,” he said.

Johnson wants to see a bill that controls costs, protects choices and covers pre-existing medical conditions. He also hopes the government option remains on the table.

“I support the public option, but it remains to be seen whether this version of it will contain the public option or not,” he said.

Asked about the controversy regarding abortions in the debate, Johnson said, “This is a health care bill and not an abortion bill. The Senate version already contains a ban on federally funded abortions.”

Thune said it appears it will be difficult to get any Republican senator to buy into the Reid bill. He predicts the government option will be included, because he said Democrats want to get to a single-payer system.

He reiterated that one constant in all of the health care bills so far is that they raise taxes, cut Medicare for seniors and providers and raise health insurance costs.

The House version — which was opposed by Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, D-S.D. — was endorsed by the AARP­ after the organization’s polling found its members supported it by a two-to-one margin, Johnson said.

Premiums have gone up four times higher than wages in the last eight years, he said.

“As more and more of our paychecks go to health care it leaves less money for everything else,” Johnson said.

Many steps remain before a final bill is hammered out in conference committee where Johnson said the real final decisions will be made. He hopes to see it done before Christmas.

“We can’t stick our heads in the sand and pretend reform isn’t needed,” he said.

For the complete article see the 11-19-2009 issue.

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