Rep. Joe Barton, a Texas Republican, said Bush called him early in the day to ask him to vote for the measure. But Barton said he decided to oppose it because of other phone calls, hundreds of them, from constituents who expressed opposition.
"This was no easy vote," and the compromise bill "wasn't all bad," Barton said. "But in its final version, it failed to give taxpayers the protection they deserve."
Bush did his best to promote the plan, starting the day with a televised statement designed to calm the markets and rally votes.
FOR THE RECORD - An article on page 8 of the news section of Tuesday's Baltimore Sun incorrectly reported the number of Democratic members of Congress who voted against the financial rescue plan that was rejected by the House of Representatives on Monday. Voting against the legislation were 133 Republicans and 95 Democrats.
THE BALTIMORE SUN REGRETS THE ERROR
"With this strong and decisive legislation, we will help restart the flow of credit, so American families can meet their daily needs and American businesses can make purchases, ship goods and meet their payrolls," the president said.
But his words appeared to have little effect on either the markets or lawmakers.
"It was a revolution by the troops," said Michael A. Genovese, director of the Institute for Leadership Studies at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. "The generals were saying, 'Follow me,' and they didn't."
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
HANCOCK Congress' resistance will drop as markets do likewise. PG 10
