Congressional leaders and the White House agreed Sunday to a $700 billion bailout of the financial industry. The biggest bailout in US history won the tentative support of presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama. The House will vote on the bailout today. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi described the $700 billion package as a buy-in, not a bailout.

Rep. Nancy Pelosi: “The party is over. The era of golden parachutes for high-flying Wall Street operators is over. No longer will the US taxpayer bail out the recklessness of Wall Street. And that’s the news that this legislation brings. Again, we want to insulate the American taxpayer, Main Street, everyday Americans, from the crisis on Wall Street. People have to know that this isn’t about a bailout of Wall Street. It’s a buy-in so that we can turn our economy around.”

The Democrats backed down on their demand to give bankruptcy judges authority to alter the terms of mortgages for homeowners facing foreclosure. Democrats also failed in their attempt to steer a portion of any government profits from the package to affordable-housing programs. According to the economist Dean Baker, the bailout includes no serious restrictions on CEO pay. However, the Democrats succeeded in securing some oversight for the program and some control of the finances. Under the proposed bill, half of the $700 billion will be immediately available, but the other half could be held back by Congress.