Bailout divides 9th District candidates

While all of the candidates for the U.S. House from the 9th District said they would have preferred more help for homeowners with mortgage problems, they disagreed about supporting the $700 billion bailout recently approved by Congress.

The Democratic incumbent, Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Evanston, voted for it, saying the plan that finally passed was a big improvement over what was originally proposed by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson.

Republican candidate Michael Younan, of Niles, insisted he would not have voted for it without more stipulations protecting homeowners. The final bill was better than the original proposal, said Younan, who manages a few medical offices and owns two businesses.

Green Party candidate Morris Shanfield, of Chicago, said he would oppose the bailout despite the fact that Paulson and President Bush have improved the plan by following the lead of British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

"It is socializing the losses of the banks, but not their power and profits," said Shanfield, a retired journalist.

Schakowsky said improvements Congress made to the plan include limiting golden parachutes for chief executive officers, creating independent oversight of the institutions assisted and providing federal tax relief for homeowners who do not itemize their taxes but pay local property tax.

Also, she said, Congress authorized half the amount requested - $350 billion. If the bailout does not seem to be working, Congress does not have to allocate the remainder.

The incumbent said she voted for the bailout because every economist she talked to said it was preferable to doing nothing. Her concerns include 401Ks and student loans and small businesses that need to borrow to buy inventory before Christmas.

"I really could give a hoot about the executives and CEOs on Wall Street who put us into this in the first place," she said, adding she hopes the next administration will reimpose regulations on banks and Wall Street.

Younan said he would rather see money go toward preventing home foreclosures than to banks.

"These people we're bailing out made poor judgments and mismanaged money," he said. "Now they're going to spend taxpayers money on frivolous things and things they don't need."

He said he supports John McCain's plan that would allow homeowners in trouble with their mortgages to exchange them for fixed-rate loans, saying this would help the economy.

"If they can support $10 billion a month for the Iraq war they can afford to bail out their own people here in this country," Younan said.

He also said his goal in wanting to represent the district is to prevent home values and Americans' personal wealth from declining more.

Meanwhile, Schakowsky said the North American Free Trade Agreement has not only cost the United States jobs but has hurt Mexicans economically, causing them to come north seeking work. She thinks the environment and rights of workers should be protected in trade agreements. Younan disagreed, saying NAFTA has decreased poverty in Mexico.

As far as taxes, Schakowsky said all the recent tax cuts have helped the wealthy, while Younan supports President Bush's tax cuts and those proposed by John McCain. Schakowsky said estates under $2 million should be exempted from taxes, and that amount should be as high as $4 million for family businesses or farms. More valuable estates should be subjected to a progressive tax, and the program should be indexed for inflation.Younan is against an estate tax altogether.

The 9th congressional district stretches from Mount Prospect Road in Des Plaines on the west to Lake Michigan on the east, taking in Rosemont, Park Ridge, Niles, Morton Grove, Skokie, Evanston, Norridge, Harwood Heights and some Chicago lakefront neighborhoods.