Financial bailout plan needs some oversight

We are involved in blood- and money-sucking wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and now we have a Wall Street bailout?


We can't afford even one of the three adventures, much less all three at the same time.

Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr., former CEO of Goldman Sachs, and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke are part of the problem, not part of the solution.

Paulson called for a blank check for a risky and doubtful plan to stabilize Wall Street. It would seem Paulson, if given a free hand, might buy up subprime mortgages in default at full face value. Congress should put a cap of no more than 25 percent on these purchases. Let the people who created this mess feel some of the pain.

We would hope Congress keeps any administrators of a bailout plan on a short leash and demands full accountability. To hire the fox to guard the chicken coop is always a dangerous game.