Sept. 24 (Bloomberg) -- House Republicans warned Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson today that his $700 billion financial rescue plan wouldn't pass and asked for more time to consider alternative ideas, lawmakers said.

``The $700 billion bill is simply not going to pass, and they recognize that,'' Representative Ray LaHood of Illinois said after Republicans met with Paulson behind closed doors at the U.S. Capitol today. ``Now it is up to Congress.''

Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke asked lawmakers to come together quickly behind the proposal to help soothe financial markets, prevent bank failures and bolster the slowing economy, lawmakers who attended the meeting said.

They were met with requests for more time so other ideas could be examined. Representative Steven LaTourette, an Ohio Republican, said Republicans told Paulson they are prepared to stay in town beyond a planned Sept. 26 adjournment to negotiate.

``To say that there is a healthy dose of skepticism would be putting it mildly,'' LaTourette said. ``I think the overwhelming sentiment at this moment in time is, what's the rush?''

Paulson and Bernanke showed some willingness to compromise after Republicans made clear ``we are not going to have this thing jammed down our throat,'' LaHood said.

`Door Has Been Opened'

``The door has been opened for us to make an offer and for those guys to see where it goes,'' LaHood said. Paulson, he said, told lawmakers, ``If you don't like our plan, we're willing to talk a bit.''

``We are going to stay here until we can come up with a plan,'' said Spencer Bachus of Alabama, the top Republican on the House Financial Services Committee.

Virginia Republican Tom Davis, who supports the administration's program, said Paulson ``had a tough audience'' because ``there is a huge credibility problem with this administration.''

``You still have a lot of members think they are crying wolf,'' Davis said.

One challenge for the administration, Davis said, is that many members of Congress see less urgency now that ``the markets have calmed down'' since Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.'s bankruptcy and the government's $80 billion takeover of American International Group Inc.

Republicans, who now hold 199 of the House's 435 seats and are expected to lose seats in this fall's elections, say they are increasingly concerned that constituents don't support the bailout idea.

`Inter-Company Loans'

The administration needs to do a better job of explaining how the financial crisis affects ordinary Americans, LaTourette said.

``They're talking about inter-company loans,'' LaTourette said. ``The guys at the diner aren't interested in inter-company loans, they want to know how they're going to pay their mortgage or their credit card bill. So they have a ways to go.''

Others said that a deal could be reached more quickly if Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama and Republican nominee John McCain signaled their support for the same approach, lessening the political tension over the issue.

``I think a lot of people would like to see Senator McCain and Senator Obama stand together and take this issue off the table so that we can pursue a solution together, but not necessarily the administration's proposal,'' said Representative Zach Wamp, a Tennessee Republican.

After the meeting, House Republican Leader John Boehner said for the first time he would endorse limits on executive compensation for financial institutions that benefit from the Treasury plan to purchase their troubled assets. Democrats are working to include such limits in a final agreement between Congress and the administration.

``I think dealing with the issue of executive compensation is an important issue,'' Boehner said. ``I think there is a reasonable way and a responsible way to do that.''

To contact the reporters on this story: Laura Litvan in Washington at llitvan@bloomberg.net; James Rowley in Washington at jarowley@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: September 24, 2008 12:45 EDT