Call it the "St. Valentine's Day Massacre Part II" or "Revenge of the Democrats," but no matter how you look at the 2009 economic stimulus bill on this Friday the 13th of February -- it's a horror story.
The Republican proposal when the process started was $440 billion and that included a stop gap measure that froze any additional spending after two quarters of positive growth in the gross domestic product. Meanwhile, the "we won" Democrats' version was $900 billion with no stop gaps in case of economic recovery.
Senate Democrats and three Senate Republicans settled on a $780 billion package, and even that was inadequate because the newly "negotiated" version that arrived on Congressional doorsteps at 11 p.m. Thursday evening was for $787 billion.
According to Republican Sen. Lindsay Graham of South Carolina, the bill actually spends $1.1 trillion over 10 years, and again, that's with no stop-gaps in case of economic recovery. That means if (on the very off chance) the bill were to succeed, the government would go right on spending.
But chances are, it won't work. Why? From what the Senate and House Republicans were able to extrapolate in the 16 hours they had to review the 1,100-page document, Graham said only 11 percent hits the economy in the first year. More than 50 percent isn't spent until two years from now.
There is a lot that is unknown about the bill, but what we do know about it, according to Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, is that there is a multi-million dollar expenditure to save red-bellied mice and an $8 billion appropriation to build a levitating train from Las Vegas to Disneyland. We also know, thanks to GOP Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, that Democrats rejected an amendment to ensure competitive bidding in the few cases where jobs are actually created. We also know there's nearly $100,000 in the bill to install doorbells in the City of Laurel, Miss.
Interestingly, the bill includes nothing to restore the banking system or repair the housing market. These matters are being dealt with separately because apparently Democrats believe they have nothing to do with fixing the economy (even though there is universal agreement that these are the very problems that derailed the economy in the first place).
Democrats keep saying the package "will create jobs," and it will "turn our economy around," but they don't say why. Instead, they use platitudes and arguments to make their case -- not facts. They talk about the war in Iraq and President Bush, but they don't discuss the package. They discuss the loss of Republican credibility -- as though that gives Democrats the right to pass bad legislation.
Democratic Sen. Charles Schumer of New York had the most outrageous comments of the day as he admonished the "vanquished" Republican minority:
When we meet you half way, don't give us the back of your hand and say it isn't bipartisan. Please, on the next bill -- it's too late on this one -- rethink the attitude.Ahhh ... can you smell it? That's change you can believe in.
Photo © Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Comments
One correction: I believe the Vegas train appropriation, added in Conference Committee, is $8 billion, not $8 million. Senator Coburn of Oklahoma said it will cost $10 million PER MILE.
Boo hoo….
The simple truth is that Congressional Democrats have already ceded way too much mindshare to their Republitard counterparts.
The Republitards have controlled most of government since the bad old days of Ronald Reagan. Your ideas are stale, tired and worst of all do not work.
Your policies have, perhaps, destroyed our great country. I would surely advise President Obama to not caucus with the GOP at all, but alas, he still believes that the GOP are sane…
Thanks for the correction, John.
I thought it sounded like billion and not million, but I wasn’t sure, so I took the conservative approach.
I’ll make the correction right away. Thanks again.
We’ll see, David.
The truth is, fiscal conservatives have never been in the majority. The one time in the last 20 years that there was a fiscal conservative in the White House (Clinton), there was also a Republican majority in Congress. The result? A HUGE surplus and virtually no national debt.
And don’t go throwing George Bush in my face. You know as well as I do, that he’s no conservative. He may have called himself one, but that doesn’t mean he was one.
His father on the other hand — the No New Taxes guy — it was his tax hikes that made the surplus possible in the first place.
So you can ‘Yay’ the Democrats all you like, but they’re about to do the same thing with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act that they chided Republicans about with the PATRIOT Act: Pass it before reading it. Oh wait — most of the Democrats voted for that, too.
The good news in all this is that when it all goes horribly wrong and the country is in financial chaos, the Democrats won’t have anyone to blame but themselves. Maybe then the American public will finally elect a fiscal conservative for a change.
SOLD OUT BY DEMOCRATS! NO WONDER REPUBLICANS WHO ADDED THE E-VERIFY AMENDMENT, WOULDN’T VOTE FOR STIMULUS?
Whats the earthly good of this Stimulus bill being passed for American workers, when we are forced to support millions of illegal aliens. The Democrats and special interest lobby conspired to kill the only tool we had against the invasion. The Republican E-Verify amendment was removed from the Stimulus package behind closed doors without debate. The mandatory Federal law with a 99.6 success rate would have halted illegal aliens stealing work from AMERICAN WORKERS. We can thank Speaker Pelosi and Senator Harry Reid for killing this law that made sense, when the whole logical idea of this Stimulus bill, was to get millions of unemployed legal workers a job.
Tell the Democratic politicians what you think and demand E-Verify be made a mandate! Jam the Washington Switchboard with your angry voices: (202) 224-3121
Other honest information at JUDICIALWATCH, NUMBERSUSA, AMERICANPATROL & CAPSWEB.
COPY & PASTE! PASS THIS ON!
I think instead of paying out $787 billion on this stimulus package (which is not going to help the American people) why not give each American family $1 million dollars. That will be less then the $787 billion they want to give out that we will have to pay back or our kids and grandkids. You think this help…it will cause what is most of the people going to do…spend it for buying homes or cars or what ever else they need and this WILL help the economy. If there is money spent and not enough workers then these companies will be hiring help which will also help the economy.
This needs to brought up to the House and to the President. Thank you.
I like your math, I wish you were making change at the store. To make it easy let’s say it was 900 billion, there are 300 million people in the US, that’s $3,000 for every man women and child. Still prety good but not a million per person.
Why do people keep saying “give the American people ‘x’ amount of money”? The government isn’t giving you money. This is your money. You gave it to them, I guess the more appropriate term is “they stole it”. There are approximately 300 million people in this country and at last count there were about 130 million private tax returns filed. Do you see a difference people? 130 million families or individuals are shouldering this burden along with private enterprise. You want to fix this? I’ll fix it. First get rid of this tax code. Hell, half the people who wrote it do not understand it and that has been confirmed by the cabinet leverl confirmation process itself. Go to a usage tax. The more you spend the more you pay in taxes. Everyone pays their fair share no loop holes. Next you have to get rid of the people who have been leading the sheep, vote out every single sitting senator or congressman in the next primary, do not wait for the general election. Third, in the general election, you must educate yourself and not vote along party lines. You cannot listen you your parents, your pastor or your union steward. And finally, give me my money back. Do not give it to people who do not ante up. Give the 130 million of us a proportional return on our money. Put it on a debit card that does not allow use for installment loans, mortgages, credit card payments or utility bills and put a 3 month experation date on it to incourage frivolous spending. Buy hard goods; computers, vehicles, cloths, food, it doesn’t matter. You want to save your neighbor’s job? You want to save your job? Quit hoarding your money, spending. You want to save your neighbor’s house? You want to save your house? Quit letting politicians spend your money on pet projects that only fufill campaign promises.
Nothing warms my heart quite as much as listening to the “loser” party (republicans)whine and cry about spending $787 billion on the people! This country is “for the people, by the people” not “for the corporations, by the corporations”. Keep saying no, as I look forward to you becoming even more irrelevant than you are now! “WE WON!” Get over it!
8 billion is what it says in the article!!
Do you have any better suggestions to fix the economy other than let this mess drag out for 10 years. The stimulus will restore confidence and make consumers spend, the surest way to restore the economy. I agree that a lot of money will be wasted, but aggressive fiscal policy is the only option left.
Seems as though the conservatives (rep) are now backing down and are the party of NO
1. NO JOB
2. Lose your job tough luck
3. Lose your Health ins too bad for you.
4. Lose your house so sorry.
5. Just end it! suicides are way up after all!!!
Get rid of the just say NO party 2010
This stimulus bill had to pass. Republicans knew that but they wanted to hold onto to their strict ideological philosophy which abhors government spending and thinks tax cuts are the solution to every problem in the Universe. What the GOP doesn’t realize is that voters are going to remember their obstructionist and destructive attitude throughout this very difficult process. Every day more people in the remaining red states are recognizing the Republican Party as the party that cares more about its political survival and ideology than about hard-working American citizens who are losing or about to lose their livelihoods. Since Phil Graham pushed his anti-regulation legislation through Congress in 1999, the Republicans had been building the expansion of the U.S. economy on a foundation of sand. In 2012, President Obama will get his fillibuster-proof senate, thanks to the leadership of the GOP.
On another note, you do NOT have to be the party with the most votes to prevent legislation. All you need to create a do-nothing senate is have 41 votes in your pocket. It takes more votes to act than it does to sit on your thumbs and do nothing.
The Republicans have no solutions other than to be against the new administration. Their only solution is once again to offer tax cuts to corporations. I still can’t believe after all these years they don’t realize supply side economic theory is a hoax. It has never been taught in text books for a reason.
Andy, here is a suggestion. Double the price on all fast food dollar menus and use the extra buck ~ new tax, while we’re at it add a quarter on all soda/pop too. We’ve hit the smokers and drinkers pockets all in the name of health etc… time to hit americans in the gut, many need it anyway, hec we’re just saving their lives too! Oh and perhaps if we’re lucky… it might even promote dinners at home with the family. Hmmm… would need a little work but makes sense to me and can you imagine how much money that would generate!?!
Al, republicans with no solutions and not doing anything? what was the 440 billion stimulus package that they brought to the table?….Besides a good faith effort in putting money back into the hands of americans and food into every kitchen.
It is the democrats that have ALWAYS been the obstructionists, intolerant of others and forcing your beliefs on others.
Sadly it appears the failed policies of Rebublicans have given Democrats an excuse to spend even more money and to continue the path of throwing our Childrens future down the tubes.
The sad reality is that it’s a Red America and a Blue America that has done a very good job of destroying the United States of America.
Government is not the solution and never has been… Government involvement with real estate is what created such a mess to begin with… thinking that the same people who got us here in the first place are going to get us out of it is just plain… insanity.
Wow guys, I think I’ll just go to Europe so I can avoid this Red Blue turf war. I voted for Barr.
But anyway, during the campaign Obama said he was going to post non-emergency legislation online for 5 days to get public feedback. Where can I read this Spending Bill?
In response to Dude:
It wasn’t posted is the thing. The bill was passed within 24 hours if I remember the reports corrected. The same reports made mention about the same public review you’ve brought up and how it seems to have been thrown out the window.
As for trying to vote out the republican party in 2010, even if that were possible, which if their current or future efforts don’t fix things, it certainly won’t be, the elimation of the party from legislation will only create bias and horrible legislation because there will be no one to keep tabs on those in power. They could pass whatever they want whether it’s helpful or not. Bipartisan politics are meant to keep things balanced yet we’re seeking solutions on the extremes, the left moving far left, the right going far right. As was mentioned in the forth comment, Bill Clinton, a democrat, was a fiscal conservative with a Republican majority in the house and together (bipartisan) we created hardly any national debt and it was the Republican President before him that increased taxes rather than making all the cuts to businesses mentioned by another.
The #1 issue of politics is bickering. Get over it and work together to keep a working goverment for it’s people, not to pass rash legislation and spend large numbers of tax dollars without much of a second thought as to what it will actually accomplish.
This editorial is guilty of spreading untrue republican myths about the stimulus package, such as the claim that $8 billion is set aside for a “levitating train” to Disneyland. See on factCheck.org, the site site was created by non-partisan Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania.
Reading this article was like listening to that girl nominated for prom queen who thinks she’s a know-it-all, deserves the crown, and truly believes she’ll win the crown, then loses and doesn’t stop complaining about it all school year even though just about everyone and their brother moved on. Get over the fact that a Republican is not in office. Mr. Quinn, people like you have been part of the problem for the past 8 years, and now you still refuse to be a part of the solution just b/c Republicans aren’t in power. You are a typical Republican. You refuse to waiver or meet in the middle no matter how wrong or right you may be. You shape and mold information into the light in which you wish to see it, rather than for what it really is. It’s very clear to see that not only are you sour over the election still, but that instead of trying to be a part of the solution, you criticize Democrats for their beliefs and opinions b/c they don’t meet or agree with your standards but the bottom line is that you’ve been in agreement with Republican standards for the past two terms and not only have we backtracked, we’re in a recession. The rebate did not work mainly b/c of the fact that gas was near $4 a gallon and for some people filling up their tanks for the week cost $75. When nearly 1/3 of your rebate goes into a week’s worth of gas, it’s rather hard to get the economy jumpstarted through such a process. You complain when you think you’re educating, and you refuse to cooperate for the greater good unless your views are backed. You cannot deal with the evolution of politics now that conservatism no longer has the impact on government that it used to. Last time I checked, you voted for Bush, twice. That shows me enough about your intelligence right there.
James,
I have to give you credit: that’s the most presumptuous, egotistical and self-righteous tripe I’ve ever read! Although you liberals very rarely do, please allow me to respond:
First of all, it’s pretty clear from your comments that you’ve read nothing else on my site except for this article. If you’d taken the time to do just a few second’s research, you’d have realized that we have more in common than you realize. For example, I agree with you that the past eight years are largely responsible for the economic problems we’re experiencing today. I won’t say policies, because I don’t think it was a multitude of policies that led to these problems — it was one policy: out of control spending. You see, Bush wasn’t a fiscal conservative. He was a social conservative; he believed in a government based on religious ideals, which focused on social issues, not financial ones. And he believed that no matter what the cost, those social issues were higher priority than anything else — even the economy. He didn’t give the consequences of his spending a second thought. In fact, out of control spending became a way of life for him. Whenever there was a problem, he tried to spend his way out of it. That’s not conservative.
And, unfortunately, that’s where you and I differ. You believe that in order to correct problems created by generating too much debt, the answer is to generate even more debt. I believe in cleaning up the financial house and creating some breathing room for the American public. And yes, by helping small businesses, you’re going to create more jobs. It doesn’t seem like rocket science to me that by helping businesses hire more people you’re creating more permanent jobs, which leads to sustainable wealth and a healthy economy. By putting money directly into the hands of the people, you’re creating more temporary jobs, and more temporary wealth. When those temporary jobs are gone, so is the wealth and the economy is right back in its hole.
But that’s not really what you’re interested in, is it? You’re one of the “We Won” Democrats. All you’re really interested in is talking about how “this is our time” and “we need a change,” but you’re not really too into the specifics. You’re into the rhetoric. I can tell. For example, you talk about how much it cost to fill up the gas tank as thought that was somehow the Republicans’ fault, when it was in fact a combination of things. First, Federal Reserve inflated the dollar over the last few decades and its weakness was bound to manifest itself in some horrible way. Second, Bush and Congress (after all, the Democrats aren’t innocent in this) declared war on a major oil-exporting country that had nothing to do with 9/11. And last, but certainly not least, other oil-producing countries took advantage of the disparity between the low supply of oil in the US and a very high demand for it.
And here’s the thing. None of the problems that led to the high oil prices have been fixed (not even the Iraq war). Not even the zillion-dollar stimulus package has addressed them. So, if you’re expecting gas prices to be low this summer, you might want to expect something else.
But, gas isn’t really your beef, either. Your problem is that you and the rest of the liberals don’t know how to handle your own success. Last night, when Obama was speaking to Congress, Democrats seized on every perceived slight against the Republicans the president made and applauded. This in an era of supposedly post-partisan politics. the truth of the matter is that the DEMOCRATS have no interest in cooperating with the other side for the greater good. Why? Because they feel that since the Republicans were in control the last eight years, any ideas they have are automatically absurd. The reality, however, is that the only reason the Dems were voted into office was because they promised to work WITH the opposition to create good legislation. They’re already not doing that, and it’s only a matter of time before they legislate themselves into a corner they can’t get out of.
As for your intelligence theory — I guess I’m brilliant, because I’ve never voted for a Bush in my life.
Selah.
My many friends and I are wondering when this spending madness is going to end. We the people, are getting sick and tired of it and ready to revolt. We know a lot of fools elected King Obama and now that is what we have to live with. God help us all!!
Does anyone remember what this country was founded on?? I am an 18 year old female, and a proud die hard republican. I am sick of all these stupid comments from people who just seem to follow what their parents say. Or decide to believe their teachers. I have always disagreed with teachers of mine, and done projects on the conservative side not only because it’s what I believe in, but also for shits and giggles. Nicely done projects, well more than deserving an A, get a C every time. Just goes to show how teachers now are. It’s sad that they can’t teach and let them decide for themselves what they want.
wow.
Since the bulk of this “stimulus” package is being funded by fiat money, the overall impact will be to further destroy the value of the dollar. Hyper-inflation may result, and the economy will be in worse condition than it was to start with. If the dollar becomes even more worthless, how are we going to continue maintaining all of these “projects”? Plus, all of this fiat money is not printed intrest free! Our Country is already in impossible debt to the international bankers. Ultimately, all of this “stimulus” is going to work in conjunction with Obamah’s efforts to form a world banking system. The government creats the problem… the people cry for a solution… the government presents a “solution”… the people are further enslaved…
Wow…
“Kathy says:
Seems as though the conservatives (rep) are now backing down and are the party of NO
1. NO JOB
2. Lose your job tough luck
3. Lose your Health ins too bad for you.
4. Lose your house so sorry.
5. Just end it! suicides are way up after all!!!
Get rid of the just say NO party 2010″
YES. THAT IS HOW LIFE WORKS (in a capitalist society)
Lose your job? Sucks, but maybe you should have worked harder so the OTHER guy lost HIS job?
Lose insurance because you lost your job? Once again, DONT LOSE YOUR JOB!!!
Lose your house? Try REALLY hard, learn some new things, gain some more work ethic (GOD FORBID!), and find a better job!
This is how it USED to work…
Lets say this… “A professor assigns a paper.
All grades would be averaged and everyone would receive the same grade so no one would fail and no one would receive an A. After the first test the grades were averaged and everyone got a B. The students who studied hard were upset and the students who studied little were happy.
But, as the second test rolled around, the students who studied little had studied even less and the ones who studied hard decided they wanted a free ride too; so they studied little. The second test average was a D! No one was happy. When the 3rd test rolled around the average was an F.”
Does this seem unrealistic? NOPE
I dont think you handled the issue objectively. You sound like an embittered republican or republican faithful. I think we should learn to let things work and if we think they wont especially when we cant stop them, we should pray for them. I think Mr. President means well.
I can’t believe their are that many drones in this country who believe government is the answer to our problems;I personally believe it’s all you lazy democrats and liberals just wanting the government to steal the working class’s money through new laws that you don’t even obey yourselves (do all of us conservatives who love capitalism ) a favor and move to europe.