Congress in a Bind Over the Bailout

You can find more stories like this in our On the Brink series.

While Wall Street expressed concern about Congress dragging its feet on a large and costly rescue plan for the banking industry, some type of solution is likely to be detailed in a matter of days, some market watchers believe.

All eyes were glued to Congressional hearings on Tuesday and Wednesday as the country's top financial regulators were grilled by lawmakers about their $700 billion bailout proposal. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke faced tough questions and sharp attacks about the wisdom of the plan and how it will help American taxpayers.

Members of Congress implied that a bill would not be passed without significant changes. Some want guaranteed benefits for taxpayers who are footing the bill, while others insist on punishments for the banks and executives whose decisions created the crisis.

Cramer: Goldman Would've Failed

The markets rallied as Paulson unveiled his plan on Thursday and predicted its hasty approval. But this week, investors sold off those stocks -- sending the Dow Jones Industrial Average down more than 530 points so far this week -- as the plan's passage seemed less certain. Credit markets also froze up again Tuesday amid the Congressional bickering.

How the ultimate measure will be structured and whether it will include provisions that Paulson and Bernanke oppose is not clear. However, Congressional leaders say they recognize the need to act quickly, and experts predict at least a temporary solution to emerge within a week or so. At least one prominent investor -- Warren Buffett -- is placing a big bet that they will.