Monday starts out hopeful. By day's end, those hopes are dashed, as the House kills the bailout bill and stock markets plunge to new lows.

Pres. Bush goes on TV Thursday and urges Congress to quickly pass a $700 billion rescue package for the U.S. financial system. Key lawmakers say they've reached an agreement, in principle, on the major parts of the plan.

Paulson, Bernanke back on Capitol Hill to sell the bailout. Fed coordinates with Australian and Scandinavian central banks to keep global finance running. Goldman Sachs sells $5 billion in common shares.

Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson and Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke head to Capitol Hill to sell the $700 billion bailout plan. Warren Buffett invests $5 billion in Goldman Sachs. WaMu talks to suitors about a takeover.

Euphoria fades Monday as the market digests previous days' events. Japan's Mitsubishi seeks a piece of Morgan Stanley—killing hopes for a Morgan/Wachovia merger. And NYSE adds 30 stocks to the "no short" list.

The Bush administration and Congress step up talks Sunday on an historic $700 billion bank bailout — racing the clock to stem further financial market turmoil.

Saturday begins another weekend of little rest for Wall Street or the U.S. government. A gigantic financial rescue plan is going to Congress. Democrats seek changes to the bill — including help for homeowners and a salary cap for CEOs. If the plan is approved, the government could purchase as much as $700 billion in mortgage-related assets from U.S.-headquartered institutions.

The Treasury plans to re-create the Resolution Trust Corporation. Calpers says it will no longer loan out shares of  Goldman Sachs  and Morgan Stanley to short sellers. Central banks worldwide announce plans to support money markets.

The economic recovery may be sharper than many forecasters, including the International Monetary Fund, have predicted, precisely because the recession was so deep, Michael Mussa, senior fellow, Peterson Institute for International Economics, told CNBC.com.

AIG makes a deal with the Fed for loans up to $85 billion in exchange for a 79.9 percent stake in the insurer.  Barclays buys several Lehman businesses for $1.75 billion. WaMu is for sale. And the SEC announces rules against naked short selling.

On Friday, the market rollercoaster continues — and seems to end up nearly where it began. Panic in funds parallels equities. FDIC's Bair warns of more bank failures. But the SEC's short-selling ban gives financials a big boost.

On Tuesday, even "good" financials start out looking pretty bad: Goldman Sachs' earnings plunge and AIG scares investors again. But volatility makes the market hard to predict.

On Monday, the weekend's turmoil starts taking its toll. Stocks fall sharply Monday on a triptych of Wall Street woe: Lehman Brothers' bankruptcy filing; Merrill Lynch's acquisition by Bank of America; and AIG's unprecedented request for short-term financing from the Federal Reserve.

Hurricane Ike takes a backseat to the the banking storm: BofA pulls out of Lehman to focus on Merrill Lynch. By late Saturday night, a deal has been drafted to acquire Lehman's bad assets and pave the way for an eventual sale of the firm.

Lehman Brothers, Washington Mutual and AIG all  race against time leading to a weekend of work and worry.