Jon S. Corzine: “I congratulate Senators Grassley and Baucus for their effort at bipartisanship to put together a very complicated and…”

“I congratulate Senators Grassley and Baucus for their effort at bipartisanship to put together a very complicated and difficult piece of legislation. I also have serious reservations which lead to a conclusion that I think we are overreaching, far overreaching relative to our financial stability. My read of this particular piece of legislation is that it will potentially bring grave concerns to marketplaces around the world when people do the analyses and see the great depth of backloaded tax cuts that are embedded in the bill. It is a very serious concern, particularly in a country that has been running the kinds of serious current account deficits that we have had over the last few years. That backs into concerns about our bond markets, as people analyze these numbers and see how they fit together, particularly in the context of an upcoming increase in defense expenditures that have not been allowed for in this bill. I have very serious concerns that we will return to periods of deficits--some say a 'deficit ditch.' I think we need to be very mindful of that tonight as we go to the vote.”