Choosing Not to Participate

The proposed Fed bailout for the mortgage industry will be covered better elsewhere. But I do want to call the reader's attention to a peculiar paragraph in the Wall Street Journal's coverage:

"Mr. Paulson is resisting efforts to limit the pay of executives whose
firms participate in the program and plans to fight it "hard," according to a
person familiar with the matter. He fears that provision would render the
program moot, since many firms might choose not to participate."

Really? I mean, really?