Marcy Kaptur: “If I might just reclaim a moment, last week I sent a letter along with several Members of Congress to our Secretary of…”

“If I might just reclaim a moment, last week I sent a letter along with several Members of Congress to our Secretary of the Treasury asking 14 very specific questions, since we are not going to have hearings here in Congress on this major bailout. I will not read all 14 questions, but just the first two, asking him to, please, expeditiously reply to these questions. No. 1, in view of the fact that U.S. banks are earning historic profits, why is this U.S. Government intervention in the form of a currency swap and lines of credit, this was the $18 billion from last week, necessary? When the private sector gambles and loses, should not those losses be borne by the private sector? That is question one. Question two is: To what specific banking and corporate interest does Mexico owe the $26 billion in outstanding obligations that come due this year, $10 billion due in this first quarter of the year, and $16 billion of which is allegedly owed to United States interests, the rest being owed to Japanese interests and German interests? Which means our people's tax dollars would have to pay for foreign creditors to Mexico. And how much in additional obligations come due in 1996 and 1997? But the bottom line is specifically, not in general, to whom is it owed? Which Wall Street investment houses, which speculative investors that are out there in our country and elsewhere? If our people are going to pay this off, all we are asking is let us know who we owe the bills to.”