Even if the government gets Congressional approval this week to buy bad debts off banks' books, satisfying some of their cash needs, the

financial sector will still need to raise money -- and investors haven't exactly been lining up to help. Unless banks can find funding somewhere, they won't be eager to resume lending, and that will leave the economy sputtering.

The good news is, outside of the financial sector, Corporate America is remarkably cash-rich with some $620 billion sitting on the books of large firms, so companies should be primed to spend once confidence is restored.

But household wealth has taken an unprecedented double hit from the real estate and stock market shocks, and it could be years before consumers feel flush again -- particularly if credit conditions remain tight.

Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson argued on Sunday that opening up federal coffers to Wall Street would benefit Main Street by preventing a deeper economic downturn."The Treasury plan is a disgrace: a bailout of reckless bankers, lenders and investors that provides little direct debt relief to borrowers and financially stressed households and that will come at a very high cost to the US taxpayer. And the plan does nothing to resolve the severe stress in money markets and interbank markets that are now close to a systemic meltdown. It is pathetic that Congress did not consult any of the many professional economists that have presented ... alternative plans that were more fair and efficient and less costly ways to resolve this crisis. This is again a case of privatizing the gains and socializing the losses; a bailout and socialism for the rich, the well-connected and Wall Street. And it is a scandal that even Congressional Democrats have fallen for this Treasury scam that does little to resolve the debt burden of millions of distressed home owners."

However, some argue that it's a "slap in the face for the free market system", says Jack Crooks at Money and Markets."At this stage, adherence to free market theory would allow for an efficient cleansing period and a healthy recovery period. How? Irresponsible and unprofitable businesses fail. Bad debts get liquidated. Excess resources go on sale, flow into more stable ventures and pool together with more profitable resources controlled by healthy corporations or entities. Sure, pain is felt by certain parties who can't keep things going. But the moving parts become more efficient and stronger. Healthier, more efficient businesses emerge. As the Austrian School of economists says, the bigger the boom generated by manipulation of money and credit, the bigger the ultimate bust. That's important, because thanks to the massive manufacturing and sale of derivatives, there has never been a boom supported to such a large degree by thin air. And since the laws of gravity haven't been outlawed yet, what goes up must come down."

Despite the fact that President George W. Bush and the leadership of both parties lined up behind the bill, the rank and file of both parties -- particularly on the Republican side -- rebelled in light of polling that showed the American public is deeply skeptical about a planned $700 billion bailout for the financial industry.

With just over one month left before the November election, politicians of both partisan stripes are concerned primarily about one thing: their own political futures.

And, even a cursory glance at polling on the issue, shows why so many politicians voted against the bill.

In a recent USA Today/Gallup, just 22 percent of the sample said they wanted Congress to "pass a plan similar to what the Bush Administration has proposed" while 56 percent wanted Congress to pass something "different" (although what that different plan would be was not made clear) and 11 percent wanted Congress to take no action at all.

The results were slightly more mixed in a New York Times/CBS News poll where 42 percent said they approved of the government's financial rescue plan while 46 disapproved, and in the Post/ABC poll where 44 percent expressed approval for the plan and 42 percent disapproved.

The data suggest that this bill was far from a political winner for members of Congress set to face voters in 36 days.

And, for vulnerable Republicans who believe that the free-spending attitude of Congress and the Bush Administration was either partially or primarily responsible for their ouster from majorities in the House and the Senate in 2006, the idea of floating the federal government another $700 billion was simply unpalatable.

It's no coincidence then that of the 205 Members who voted in support of the bill today, there are only two -- Reps. Chris Shays (R-Conn.) and Jon Porter (R-Nev.) -- who find themselves in difficult reelection races this fall. The list of the 228 "nays" reads like a virtual target list for the two parties.

While it's clear that the main reason the bill failed was the provincial concerns of more than 220 Members, the blame game is already well under way at the presidential level. John McCain had staked much last week on his high-profile decision to suspend his campaign to return to Washington to try and help bring about a deal on the bailout.