Daily Press - Warner, Gilmore Clash Over Bailout in Roanoke Debate

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Their final debate, and their only televised debate, was the most aggressive.

BY HUGH LESSIG

A spirited clash over the newly minted Wall Street bailout plan highlighted the third U.S. Senate debate Friday between Democrat Mark R. Warner and Republican Jim Gilmore.

In their most aggressive encounter yet, the two former governors disagreed sharply over the need for the $700 billion rescue that comes at taxpayers' expense. Warner said he would have voted for it, although the plan had flaws. Gilmore was flatly against it.

"Too often in politics, the perfect can be the enemy of the good," said Warner. Failing to act would have created "economic turmoil across our whole nation," from the small business owner trying to meet payroll to the college student vying for a loan.

"We didn't have the luxury of waiting," he said.

Gilmore characterized the plan as a bloated lifeline that benefits "high rollers on Wall Street" at the expense of struggling taxpayers. He said he would continue to speak out against it as the campaign heads down the home stretch.

The Republican also swiped at Warner, a businessman-turned-politician, when he said that "nobody that reads a balance sheet would do that to the taxpayer." Gilmore said he wanted Congress to hold fast-track hearings to study different alternatives. He said the best approach he's seen would require troubled companies to issue a bond to draw money from the U.S. Treasury, and then repay it with a low interest rate.

"That would not have transferred the bad loans on the balance sheets of those companies to the taxpayer," he said. "And that's what this is going to do. And that's wrong."

Gilmore also predicted that more bailouts are on the way.

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