When the federal government took over the mortgage firms Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac earlier this month, they also ousted the top executives of each company and eliminated $12.59 million in salary and bonuses the two stood to gain.

There's no need to hold a bake sale for Daniel Mudd of Fannie Mae or Richard Syron of Freddie Mac, however: They'll still get a combined $9.43 million in retirement and pension benefits on their way out the door.

Still, deep-sixing the golden parachutes sent an important signal. U.S. taxpayers are angry about the fraternity party excess on Wall Street that helped create the bailout frenzy we're in today, and executive compensation that rewards position over performance has become a national symbol of lost priorities. The nation's four largest investment banks — including Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers — paid out a total of almost $30 billion in bonuses in 2007.

That's why Democrats in Congress are justified in pushing for sensible restrictions on compensation paid to executives whose firms will be taking advantage of the proposed $700 billion bailout of the U.S. financial system by dumping their bad debt on the taxpayers.

The architect of the bailout plan, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, admits that there have been "excesses'' in executive compensation, but he'd rather save the pay debate for another time. Paulson fears that any punitive action on salaries might prompt firms that should be participating in the bailout to stay away.

Meanwhile, the bailout clock is ticking. Congress shouldn't let partisan bickering cause a significant delay in passage of what amounts to an emergency rescue of the U.S. financial system. Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke left congressional leaders stunned and convinced after their briefing on the seriousness of the situation last week. Still, the apparent bipartisan support for the Treasury's plan that came out of that meeting lasted fewer than 24 hours.

Once they realized how much leverage they have, Democrats — and, to a lesser extent, Republicans — started proposing changes to the simple proposal drawn up by Treasury officials, including restricting executive compensation and ensuring effective oversight of the program. Details on two other proposals — providing relief for homeowners and giving the government shares in the troubled companies — were still emerging Monday.

It's true that Congress could act on any of the add-on proposals being floated at any time in the future, which would give Paulson the quick and clean passage he wants.

At the same time Congress hands over $700 billion in bailout money, however, it should make clear to participating financial institutions that there will be significant strings attached, including reasonable executive compensation and transparent oversight.

Executives whose firms take part in the bailout should not be free to stuff their own pockets with profits they gain from the billions of dollars in public money they'll receive. There should be reasonable restrictions on the amount of bonus and severance money those companies pay top executives during the life of the program.

A truly bipartisan approach to Wall Street's mounting troubles is needed. Congressional leaders should quickly reach agreement on a bailout plan that will bolster the nation's financial institutions and convince taxpayers that their representatives in Washington value their enormous, and involuntary, contribution to the private sector.