All Blog Posts from Political Hotsheet

As General Motors heads down the road to bankruptcy aided by taxpayer dollars, Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) says the U.S. is on the road toward socialism.

Speaking to The Early Show Friday, a day after the auto giant reached a deal — brokered by the U.S. government — with its bondholders that will eliminate the company's unsecured debt in exchange for stock, Shelby said bankruptcy was unavoidable, but that the decision should have been made six months ago.

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Republican Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, the top Republican on the Senate Banking Committee, on Wednesday lambasted Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner's new plan for using the second $350 billion in financial bailout money.

Speaking on CBS News' The Early Show, Shelby said the plan, presented in a speech and a Senate committee hearing yesterday afternoon, "was vague, indefinite, opaque at best."

"First of all, there was nothing specific in the plan. He had nothing really to say to the American people, the Congress, or to the banks. He basically admitted this," Shelby said. "He wasted about three or four hours of the Senate's time and we want to know where the specifics are. And he doesn’t have them."

"They are in unchartered waters, but they've got to do better than this," Shelby added. "It sounds to me similar to what [former Treasury Secretary] Paulson did on TARP one, and that's unacceptable to the Congress, unacceptable to the American people. They want transparency, they want to know who is going to benefit from this. Are they going to benefit? Is it going to make the banking system work?"

"I think on both sides of the aisle in the Senate Banking Committee, people were appalled that he had really nothing to say," Shelby said.

You can watch the whole interview below:

Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., told Bob Schieffer on CBSNews.com's new Web program "Washington Unplugged" that he hopes Republican senators can ban together on the economic stimulus package to be presented to the Senate next week.

"I hope Bob that the Republicans can stay together. I haven't done a vote count but if we stay together they won't pass that bill," Mr. Shelby said point blank. Though he is "doubtful" they his colleagues will completely unify.

"I think there will be some Republicans that will jump on the bandwagon and jump ship," he said, "but I think it's a bad piece of legislation."

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Click Here To Watch The Debut "Washington Unplugged" Web Show

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Schieffer asked if the bill could pass in the Senate, as it did in the House, without any Republican support to which Shelby exclaimed, "absolutely, not."

"We could keep talking about it. If the Republicans ban together, there are forty one of us this bill won't pass."

"I don't believe it is going to turn the economy around," Shelby argued about the House passed version set to hit the senate floor. "If you look at it, it is going to be a trillion dollars, a trillion dollars more. It is probably going to take another trillion dollars dealing with the financial institutions."

"I don't know where the money comes from...we ought to get the private sector involved," he admitted.

Asked what changes Democrats and the White House must make to the bill passed Wednesday by the House, will no Republican support, Shelby was explicit: "we would have to basically scuttle it. Do a one hundred and eighty degree turn."

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Today, CBSNews.com launches a new 15-minute web show, moderated by Face the Nation host Bob Schieffer, called "Washington Unplugged."

The first episode, which you can watch below, features Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., White House spokesperson Bill Burton, CBS News correspondent Chip Reid, CBS News chief political consultant Marc Ambinder, and Politico.com's Nia-Malika Henderson.

The episode opens with comments from Shelby that provides a window into Senate Republicans' attitude towards to the Obama administration's stimulus package. Next comes a roundtable in which the panelists discuss how the new administration has found its own style, followed by an interview with Burton in which he talks about getting used to working in the White House.

The episode wraps up with a commentary from Schieffer, who discusses Alaska Governor Sarah Palin coming to dinner in Washington.

Watch it all below.

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