U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud, a Democrat from Maine’s 2nd District, voted against the passage of the $700 billion emergency rescue bill for the nation’s financial system.

The extensively negotiated bailout bill failed to pass the House on Monday afternoon by a final vote of 228-205, with 133 Republicans joining 95 Democrats in opposition.

Monica Castellanos, spokeswoman for Michaud, said he voted against the bill because “he felt it lacked the adequate protections for taxpayers.”

“Some economists suggested that directly aiding homeowners would be the best way forward, arguing that such an approach would directly help Main Street while having the additional benefit of adding value to troubled Wall Street assets,” Michaud said in a statement. “Unfortunately, we kept the original White House framework and leaders attempted to add sweeteners to the bill in order to gain votes.”

Michaud’s office provided a list of proposals that Michaud was in favor of but weren’t included in the bill that was put to the vote on Monday. They included a stronger recoupment clause, which would have actually required provisions in the bill that Wall Street pay for it, a minimal tax on stock trading that would have been put in place to pay for the cost of the program, and temporarily expanding powers for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to shore up the capital of weak banks.

U.S. Rep. Tom Allen of Maine’s 1st District, also a Democratic Senate candidate, voted in favor of the bill and reacted strongly to its failure.

“It is unconscionable that the House failed to reach consensus on legislation to stabilize financial markets as America stands on the brink of the worst economic crisis since the 1930s,” Allen said in a statement.

Maine’s Republican Sens. Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe also reacted to the House vote.

Collins said Congress must address the financial crisis before it adjourns.

“Any compromise plan worked out by congressional negotiators must remedy the fundamental flaws of the administration’s first proposal and include the principles that I have pushed for – strong protections for taxpayers, curbs on excessive executive compensation and tough oversight and accountability,” Collins said in a statement.

Snowe, a senior member of the Senate Finance Committee, said she was disappointed with the lack of bipartisanship in the face of the latest economic crisis.

“At a time of tremendous economic peril in this country it is regrettable the bipartisan process has broken down,” she said in a statement. “Now it’s imperative that Congress continue to work together to forge a bipartisan consensus that includes protections to safeguard taxpayers, ensure access to critical credit for Americans, increase transparency and accountability in our financial markets and restrict executive compensation.”

Both senators pointed out that the credit crunch has started to affect the state in a tangible way.

“Already, the state of Maine is experiencing the credit squeeze as show by its recent inability to float a $50 million transportation bond because of market instability,” Collins said.

Snowe said the bond would have paid for “critical transportation improvements and created upward of 1,700 jobs.”


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