Baron Hill tours city, campus

Congressman Baron Hill, D-9th, didn’t vote for the $700 billion package two weeks ago that many said would rescue the wrecked financial institutions on Wall Street. And he’s still not hearing the end of it.

“I need more time. I need more conversations,” Hill said. “I think everybody needs more time or conversations to figure out if this is actually going to affect people on Main Street.”

Hill toured the Bloomington campus Sunday afternoon – knocking on doors and speaking with supporters at the Monroe County Democratic Headquarters, Teter Quad and finally Kappa Alpha Theta sorority. Hill is running for re-election against Republican Mike Sodrel, who held the seat from 2004 to 2006.

SLIDESHOW: Hill in Bloomington

At each stop he took the questions from students and applauded young people for their efforts in changing the election.

“I’ve never seen a year like this year when so many young people are involved in this election,” Hill said. “I really do believe that you can be the difference in this election.”

Hill, who was one of the 205 members of the House of Representatives who rejected the $700 billion bailout bill two weeks ago, said he opposed it because it was too soon to make a decision.

During the weeks of economic turmoil, Hill said they spoke with many economists, all who said if there wasn’t action soon, “there was going to be a depression,” Hill said. “Not a recession, but a depression. I still didn’t feel comfortable.”

After the bill was later passed by the Senate and signed by President Bush, many thought, psychologically, the stock market would start recovering, Hill said. But that has yet to happen.

“It has gotten worse,” Hill said. “We passed the bill, and Wall Street is still sinking.”

Still, Hill said he isn’t convinced the problems on Wall Street have trickled down and affected the average Hoosier. Nonetheless, the national economic problems are still No. 1 on Americans’ minds, he said.

“Now it’s not about the Iraq war,” Hill said. “Now it’s not about gas prices. It’s not about Afghanistan. It’s not about crime. It’s all about the economy. And the dynamics of that change is favoring Obama.”

Hill spent time at the local Democratic headquarters, applauding those who were on the phones calling voters and urging them to vote for Obama. No work was more important than the work at the ground level persuading voters, Hill said.

“I am convinced upon this election people all over the world will say ‘look at what the people of the United States of America have done by electing him as president,’” he said. “Barack Obama is bringing a whole new army of people on board in the Democratic party. I just love the guy, and I think he’s the future.”

Students like AnnElyse Gibbons, a junior who is part of Campaign for Change, said she was impressed with Hill’s decision to reach different groups of students through Sunday’s campaigning.

“I think it really shows what kind of candidate he is,” Gibbons said. “He was really not just talking to us but answering our questions.”

Senior Faz Mahmud agreed that Hill’s stumping in Bloomington reached a variety of students and enabled him to explain his decision on the bailout.

“That’s a hard decision,” Mahmud said of Hill’s decision to reject it. “At the same time we need to save Wall Street, but we need to hold it accountable.”