'Cow patty,' booze denote mess on House floor

From comparing the economy to a drunken driver and the bailout package to a "cow patty," representatives in the U.S. House may have been short on votes Monday for the bailout legislation but they were long on metaphor and analogy.

Here's a sampling of some metaphors and analogies that made their way into the rhetoric on the House floor, both in support and against the $700 billion bailout package. The measure, and the market, ultimately took a nose dive:

• "This is a huge cow patty with a piece of marshmallow stuck in the middle," Rep. Paul Broun, R-Ga., said of the package. "I'm not going to eat that cow patty."

• "We don't have a perfect bill," said Rep. Paul Kanjorski, D-Pa. "We do have a perfect storm."

• "We have individuals who are drunks and regulators who are pouring the drinks," said Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., as he attempted to compare the faltering economy to drunken drivers. "We have to clear the highway."

FIND MORE STORIES IN: United States | Alabama | House Financial Services Committee | House GOP | Rep. Peter Defazio | Rep. Spencer Bachus | Rep. Adam Putnam | D-Pa | R-Fla | D-Ore | Rep. Paul Kanjorski | R-Ga | Rep. Gregory Meeks
• "Like an explorer in uncharted territory, none of us in this body have any good judgment or insight into what happens if we don't pass this bill," said Rep. Spencer Bachus, of Alabama, the top Republican on the House Financial Services Committee.

• "The golden parachutes have been exchanged for camouflage parachutes," said Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., of the proposal's goal of limiting executive compensation.

• "We are watching one domino after another fall, that are the pillars of our financial system in the United States," said Rep. Adam Putnam, R-Fla., a member of the House GOP leadership team.
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