

Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, left, flanked by Sens. Carl Levin, D-Mich., Christopher Bond, R-Mo., George Voinovich, R-Ohio, Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich, and Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, speaks with members of the media following the Senate's rejection of an emergency $14 billion loan bailout for US auto companies, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2008, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)