Whitfield, House Vote "Nay" on TARP

By Carrie Pond

Washington, D.C – The U-S House of Representatives voted 270 to 155 yesterday against spending the final $350 billon allocated through the Troubled Assets Relief Program, or TARP. TARP was introduced by the Bush administration and approved by Congress in October amid instability in the credit market. Kentucky's 1st district representative Ed Whitfield is one of the 270 who disapproves of TARP's handling.

"The careless manner in which the first half of these TARP funds was spent demonstrates that we simply cannot hand the Treasury Department a blank check at taxpayers' expense."

Whitfield says Congress instead should provide tax incentives to encourage investment in the American economy. Despite the House's vote, the funds will still be released because of last week's Senate vote that opted against blocking the funds.