If the potential collapse of the nation's credit markets can't change politics as usual, what can?

Nothing, apparently. The U.S. Senate sent its version of the $700 billion economic bailout bill to the House with a message: Take it or leave it.

It's tempting to choose the latter. The bill tacks on some $150 billion in new tax breaks, including some apparently aimed at specific senators to gain their support — among them, breaks for bicycle commuting, wooden-arrow manufacturers and motor-sports racetracks.

"All I'm trying to do is get this thing passed," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said in The New York Times.

Indeed. For lawmakers uneasy about voting to bail out Wall Street financiers, the Main Street sweeteners give them a reason to do so. In the absence of political leadership, we get political cover.

The Senate's 450-page bill is a lot different from the Bush administration's original three-page proposal. It contains more oversight, limits executive compensation and releases the $700 billion in parcels, starting at $350 billion. It also temporarily raises the amount of bank deposits covered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, from $100,000 to $250,000.

Even so, the changes might not be enough to convince the House to hold its collective nose and vote "aye." Opponents in the Senate complain that it still gives the Treasury secretary too much power over $700 billion in taxpayer money, and they argue the scheme may not even work. More time is needed to craft a comprehensive plan to address the underlying causes of the conditions that led to this mess.

It's true that the current bill to deal with the crisis — the only one available — is not a cure-all. But waiting for the perfect solution has costs. As it get harder to get a loan to grow a business or buy a house, the current credit crisis could balloon into a widespread calamity. House lawmakers should pass the bill to deal with the immediate crisis.

Then work must begin on rebuilding the trust and confidence among Americans disillusioned by an embarrassing lack of leadership in Congress.