Six out of 10 Americans oppose the federal government helping in the kind of bail-outs that helped Bear Stearns avert failure, according to a Gallup poll conducted March 24-27. Opposition to the bail-outs were pretty evenly reflected across party lines. Last month, the Federal Reserve had voted to provide Bear Stearns with emergency credit to help it avoid bankruptcy. However, Americans do favor, 56 percent to 42 percent, having the federal government help people from losing their homes because they can’t keep up with their mortgage payments. This has become an issue in the presidential campaign with the Democratic candidates generally favoring that position while John McCain has said, “It is not the duty of government to bail out and reward those who act irresponsibly, whether they are big banks or small borrowers.”