Obama aides press Senate to allow bailout money

By Richard Cowan and Jeremy Pelofsky

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Aides to President-elect Barack Obama tried to shore up support among Senate Republicans on Wednesday for releasing $350 billion (£240 billion) in Wall Street bailout funds, as a leading Democrat in the House of Representatives predicted Congress was unlikely to stand in the way.

Senate Democratic leaders were working to defeat a Republican measure to block release of the money amid deep public distrust over how the first $350 billion of a $700 billion bailout was handled by the Treasury Department.

Meanwhile, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said there was progress towards finalizing a massive economic stimulus bill.

"We are zeroing in on a final number," Pelosi told reporters. "We are containing it, recognizing that what we have in the package must create jobs immediately."

She added that details could become available by Thursday.

The bill could cost around $775 billion over two years with a combination of tax cuts and government public works projects aimed at creating or maintaining 3 million jobs.

Obama will be sworn in as president on Tuesday and if the second batch of bailout money is released by Congress, his administration would oversee how it would be spent.

As lawmakers face intense lobbying by Obama's team, the Senate is expected to vote by the weekend on a resolution that would block the release of the money, while the House will wait to see what the Senate decides before scheduling its own vote.