Wilbur Ross is concerned about "wacky" bailout plan provisions. And if the House of Representatives votes down the emergency economic bill, the billionaire investor has an alternative plan — that he'd stake with his own funds.
Ross told CNBC that passing the Paulson Plan is a painful necessity.
"But it should be renamed the 'Lobbyist Reward Bill,'" he joked. The chairman and CEO of WL Ross & Company pointed to such "wacky" provisions as:
- repealing a 39 cent excise tax on children's wooden arrows
- reducing tarriffs on importing rum from Puerto Rico
"I suppose people whose houses are being foreclosed can drink rum and watch their kids shoot bow-and-arrows," he joked grimly.
"If Congress has any doubts why the American people have lost their confidence in them, this sort of nonsense is a very good reason."
The mega-investor said he'd prefer some of the $700 billion be applied to mortgages, "but there's no linkage" being enforced: "There's no guarantee this will help the mortgage market."
Ross then offered his own ideas for a rescue plan, which could be enacted if the House fails to approve the bill in Friday's vote. He said his funds would stake as much as $1 billion in his alternative plan. (Watch Ross Interview video for details of his plan.)
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CNBC's Companies in the News:
- General Electric
- UBS
- Playboy Enterprises
- Lehman Bros.
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