Club slams Simpson ‘bailout’ vote

The fiscally conservative Club for Growth is ripping Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) for backing the Wall Street bailout.

In a new advertisement, the group uses a clip of Simpson acknowledging his vote for the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program.

{mosads}”I voted for the $700 billion bailout. Everybody got that? My name is Mike Simpson. I voted for the $700 billion bailout,” Simpson says in footage in the ad.

Since voting for the bailout, Simpson has tried to distance himself from the legislation, which has proven unpopular with conservative voters.

He has highlighted a vote he made to repeal the program, something the Club said obfuscates his true record.

“Mike Simpson says he voted to end the Wall Street bailout. Fact checkers call that ‘false,’ ” the ad’s narrator says.

Simpson’s first ad says he “voted to repeal the Wall Street bailout and repay taxpayers,” referring to a 2009 vote against releasing the second half of funds for the Troubled Asset Relief Program. But he voted for the initial creation of TARP. The ad has been criticized by fact-checkers.

The Club is backing attorney Bryan Smith (R) against Simpson, a friend and close ally of Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio).

The $700 billion bailout was approved by Congress at the height of the financial crisis. Money went to major banks and financial institutions in a bid to shore up support for the sector.

Much of the money from the financial sector was returned to the government with interest, though a loss was taken on money provided to the U.S. automakers GM and Chrysler.