Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) held a press conference at his Kingston Office on Monday to discuss the current national economic crisis, where he said "this is the most corrupt and incompetent administration since 1929," comparing the current president's administration to that of Warren Harding, who is largely cited as having had a direct hand in the Great Depression of the early twentieth century.

Congressman Hinchey referred to the $700 billion bailout plan to purchase "toxic mortgages" held by financial institutions across the country, which has since made worldwide headlines all week, as a "con job," and he credited a large portion of the current financial crisis with the 1999 repeals of several provisions from 1933's Glass-Steagall Act, a law which originally had placed more regulations on financial firms and banks, and helped stabilize the national economy during the Depression.

Hinchey pointed out that the repeal was led by Texas Senator Phil Gramm, Republican Presidential candidate John McCain's former financial adviser, who had infamously called America a "nation of whiners" several months ago in reference to economic fears. Hinchey also said that he, along with only 56 other senators, had voted in opposition to the bill, which was approved with 435 yes-votes in 1999, and was signed into law by then-President Bill Clinton.

"This is what I've been saying since '99," said Hinchey, referring to the effects de-regulating the financial industry has had on the national economy. "The economic impact this recklessness is having on working people in the country is going to get more severe."

Hinchey used the press conference to decry the bailout plan's lack of oversight, which, as initially proposed by President Bush's administration, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, would have made the treasury's use of the money "non-reviewable and committed to agency discretion," and not reviewable "by any court of law or any administrative agency."

"We can't give them what they want," said the congressman. "We can't allow them to behave in these reckless ways."

"The dramatic downturn in the economy did not happen overnight," reads a press release from Hinchey's office on the same day. "What's happening on Wall Street and what people are seeing happen to their retirement accounts is the direct result of deliberate efforts by the Bush administration to deregulate the market in order to benefit corporate friends and campaign donors. The absence of regulations allowed greed to take over the financial markets and has now resulted in the collapse of some of America's largest financial firms and banks. Strong action is clearly needed to get our financial institutions back on track, but it's imperative that any bailout be accompanied with the restoration and enhancement of oversight and regulatory authority."

Hinchey said at the press conference that it was important to "prevent as much foreclosure as possible so less people are thrown out of their homes," and said that the crisis on the whole was "serious, and needs to be addressed comprehensively," a sentiment which has been echoed by other lawmakers on both sides of the aisle in their calls to avoid rushing into approving the bill which, they say, would not prevent another crisis from breaking out again in the near future, thereby rendering the bailout actions moot.

Hinchey highlighted legislation he, along with other Democrats, was hoping to pass this week which would help to stimulate the American economy, raising the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and acting as a counteragent to the financial meltdown.

"In order to get the economy back on track, the government must go beyond bailing out financial entities," said Monday's press release. "The U.S. must invest in itself and create jobs."

When asked if he was mistrustful of the information he had received from the Bush administration regarding the proposal, he responded, "Amen…I know how they lie." He then compared the administration's treatment of the crisis over the last few months to the allegations of their supplying false information in the lead-up to the current Iraq war. He referred to his opposition to the war, and how "people beat me up for that…they've been conning this job a long time."

"This crisis is real; what they're saying about it is untrue," said Hinchey, referring to the administration and its recent claims that the economy was "solid."

"They created this crisis," he continued. "They're lying about how big and bad it is. It's bigger than they're saying.

"Think what would have happened if Bush had been successful in privatizing social security in 2005," said the congressman, drawing parallels to the current crisis and what could have happened had social security become similarly deregulated. "If people think of these things, they'll see what we're dealing with here."

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