Senate Passes Amendment to Stop Outsourcing Subsidy

Earlier this week, the Associated Press reported [1] that taxpayers' bailout money was being used to subsidize the financial industry's efforts to offshore its workforce. Now, the Senate has passed a bipartisan amendment to crack down on this rip-off scheme. Here's a press release from Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), one of the authors of the amendment:

WASHINGTON, February 6 – As unemployment rose and the worst recession since the Great Depression worsened, the Senate today voted to prohibit banks that take taxpayer bailout funds from replacing laid off workers with foreign guest workers...Legislation by Senators Sanders (I-Vt.) and Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) would require bailed-out banks where there have been layoffs to hire only Americans for two years. On a voice vote, the Senate added the Sanders-Grassley Amendment to an economic recovery bill.

It remains to be seen whether this amendment remains in the final stimulus bill, but the fact that no senator was willing to stand up and oppose it is a good sign. Couple this with the strong vote in support of Buy America provisions [2] in the stimulus, and the Financial Times [1] is right - progressives pushing for a radically altered trade, globalization and international economic policy are starting to win.