So what now? Well, in my opinion--and I admit I am a lot more combative than your average Democrat--I believe our party should craft its own bailout proposal. It should follow the principles outlined by Obama:
*protect the taxpayer,
*extend a helping hand to sinking homeowners,
*impose real transparency and strict regulation on the financial markets,
*contain a mechanism that recaptures as much as possible of the obscene profits of those who caused this mess in the first place: no golden parachutes and a cap on executive salaries.
Democrats should write this package to address the concerns of their caucus and constituents. Then Democrats should pass it--they have the votes. That is what a majority is for. That is what they were elected to do.
They should not take ownership of the problem--but they should own the solution.