US House passes $ 819 bn bailout bill

Washington, Jan 29: The US House of Representatives on Wednesday, Jan 28 approved the key $819 billion bailout package which was pushed by the newly elected US President Barack Obama with a 244-188 vote. The package is expected to revive American economy that is facing a severe meltdown since the great Depression of last century.

The stimulus package, but failed to receive even a single Republican vote marking the first major setback to Obama in gaining bipartisan support to his major policy decisions. He had met all the Republican leaders at the Capitol Hill making his personal appeal to them.

Eleven Democrats also voted against the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which now moves to the Senate for vote, before it could be signed into law by Obama. In a statement released after the House approval Obama said that it would receive bipartisan support in the Senate. He said," I hope that we can continue to strengthen this plan before it gets to my desk. But what we can't do is drag our feet or allow the same partisan differences to get in our way.

"We must move swiftly and boldly to put Americans back to work, and that is exactly what this plan begins to do," he added.

In United States, where every week more than thousands are losing jobs, the new act is expected to create more than 2 million jobs in the coming years. It will also induce massive investment into the infrastructure of United States of America.

OneIndia News (With inputs from Agencies)