Nancy Pelosi CNN Breaking News Bailout Bill

THE EVENT: The U.S. House on Monday rejected a bailout plan which would have allowed the U.S. government to use up to $700 billion to buy toxic assets and ease the systemic strains on financial markets. U.S. equity markets plunged at the first sign the bill was headed for defeat - and the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 ended with their biggest single-day point losses in history. THE DETAILS: The bailout plan - which lost on a 205-228 vote - was hammered out in marathon sessions over the weekend and endorsed by the congressional leadership from both sides of the aisle and the White House. They predicted the lack of a bill would intensify both the credit crunch and the economic downturn. In a bid to convince Main Street that it wasn't just a Wall Street bailout, the president and congressional leaders warned that mortgages and student loans would stop - and bankruptcies and job losses would surge - without the bailout. President George W. Bush personally lobbied for the bill with a Monday morning statement - and was slated to call a "couple dozen" lawmakers prior to the vote, according to a White House spokesman. MARKET REACTION: The Dow Jones Industrial Average, already down about 300 points on the day, dropped an additional 200 points when the bill was rejected. The DJIA closed down 777.68 - the largest point loss on record - or off 6.98%. The Nasdaq and S& P 500 fared worse, falling 9.14% and 8.77%, respectively. Treasurys and gold futures soared as the bailout failed. The U.S. dollar's losses were contained after the bailout vote - there was no major slide versus the euro or yen. Crude futures also plunged, settling down more than $10 on the day at $96.21 - the biggest dollar decline since 1991.

YouTube | September 29, 2008

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