Following the US Senate's approval October 1, the US House of Representatives voted to approve a revised $700 billion bailout plan for the financial markets October 4, clearing the way for President Bush to sign the package.
The House voted 263 to 171 to pass the bill, reversing its rejection of it on September 29, which had resulted in a historic fall in the stock market, with many steel company stocks being especially hard-hit. The core of the revised plan, however, remains the same as the plan that was initially rejected -- It allows the Treasury Secretary to buy as much as $700 billion in bad assets from financial companies to get credit flowing again.
Domestic steelmakers urged Congress earlier last week to approve the historic package, with American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) President Thomas Gibson telling Congress in a letter that it is necessary to restore confidence in the credit markets to "ensure that the United States continues to be a country where we ‘make things.'"