Rep. Earl Pomeroy, D-N.D., cast his second "yes" vote for the historic $700 billion bailout plan on Friday.

The bill passed 263-171, with Pomeroy joining 172 Democrats and 91 Republicans voting for it. Pomeroy voted for the bill on Monday, which surprisingly failed in the House 228-205. The Senate passed a similar bill on Wednesday night, 74-25.

"All of the indicators are bad," Pomeroy said, noting North Dakota's economy is not immune from the credit crunch gripping the nation. "I have a strong belief that the good economic times that we're experiencing in North Dakota will inevitably be affected by a national downturn."

Pomeroy's Republican opponent, Duane Sand, said he opposed the bill, saying "people are outraged" by its passage Friday.

"It's a bad vote, and it's a bad bill," Sand said. "(Taxpayers) are not being represented today."

Pomeroy said many constituents have been calling his office all week about the bill, many worried about the state of the economy.

"The economy was so fragile that something had to be done," Pomeroy said.

President Bush signed the bill into law, effectively giving the Treasury Department the power to start buying toxic Wall Street assets in order to loosen up a tightening credit market that threatens the national economy as banks continue to fail at home and abroad.

The bill also contained many "sweeteners" such as tax breaks and a measure to increase the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation guarantee from $100,000 to $250,000.

Clarifying clean coal

The Bismarck-Mandan Chamber of Commerce said Thursday they got the clarification they needed regarding Sen. Barack Obama's position on clean coal: He supports it.

The chamber sent out a press statement on Tuesday critical of Obama's Democratic running mate Sen. Joe Biden for saying, "No coal plants here in America" to a supporter at a recent campaign event that was captured on video and circulated on the Internet.

Sen. Kent Conrad sent his "clarification" to the chamber Thursday, which he included in a press statement: "I spoke with Senator Obama, and he has reaffirmed his support for clean coal as part of his overall energy plan," Conrad said.

That position also is on Obama's campaign Web site.

Biden also addressed his position on clean coal during Thursday's vice presidential debate against his Republican opponent Sarah Palin.

"My record for 25 years has supported clean coal technology" Biden said. "A comment made in a rope line was taken out of context. I was talking about exporting that technology to China so when they burn their dirty coal it won't be as dirty. It will be clean."

Kelvin Hullet, president of the Bismarck-Mandan chamber, said he appreciated the prompt response from Conrad.

"With Bismarck-Mandan's economy being bolstered by nearby coal production, it is vital that we understand candidate positions," Hullet said. "We will certainly continue to follow the candidates and ask questions as we see fit."

Measure dissent

The North Dakota Association of Community Providers came out in opposition to Measures 1 and 2 on Tuesday.

Barbara Murry, the NDACP executive director, said the group that represents caretakers for the disabled could get funding cuts if the ballot measures are approved in November.

Measure 1 would direct state income from oil production into a new permanent oil trust fund. Measure 2 would slash income taxes in half and corporate income taxes by 15 percent:

Murry said it's best for the state government to decide what to do with state money, "rather than their hands being tied by the initiated measures."

(Reach reporter Brian Duggan at 223-8482 or brian.duggan@;bismarcktribune.com.)