The stimulus package that isn’t
President Obama has been saying for quite some time, even before he won the election, that our infrastructure needs to be rebuilt in a major way and there is no argument there. Some of our roads and bridges are in bad shape. His idea was to have a stimulus package that would fund those kinds of projects and thus help create jobs that our country needs for it’s citizens who are out of work. So far, I don’t have a problem with that. If anything, he is taking a page from the Mike Huckabee playbook.
The economic stimulus package that is working it’s way through Congress has passed it’s first hurdle in the House, which is no surprise, given the fact that the Republicans have virtually no say in the matter and not enough votes to even slow it down. We might as well face it folks, this package is going to be passed and it is going to have the Democratic stamp all over it. That being said, I wouldn’t have a problem with that, if it was going to do what they said it will do. However, as the legislation begins to come together and more information is revealed, it is becoming increasingly clear that this is not an actual stimulus package. In reality, it is a spending package that does nothing but further the social agenda of the Democratic Party.
Yes, there are fund in the package for roads and bridges, but that accounts for only a small portion of the spending. The last count I can find has the total spending for actual infrastructure at around $90 billion. The total spending is some $825 billion. Do the math and it is very clear what the Democrats are up to. They are throwing in just enough spending on infrastructure to call it good and the rest is nothing but pet projects and spending to advance their social agenda.
I don’t have a problem with some of the spending in the package. The National Weather Service is going to get a new super computer out of the deal and there is some money in it for expanding broadband Internet service to more of the country. More pork spending includes billions of dollars to help prevent sexually transmitted diseases, helping people quit smoking, subsidies for Amtrak, and money for the National Endowment for the Arts. There is even $4 billion for “neighborhood stabilization activities”, which I believe will be going to groups like ACORN. Remember who they are? President Obama said he would reward them and it appears this package is the first installment.
Some of these programs may very well be needed, but should they be included in a package that is supposed to be designed to stimulate our economy? I think not. Under the guise of saying something needs to be done and done quickly, the Democrats have seen the chance to fund the kinds of social projects they have always wanted to fund. Disguised as an economic stimulus package, we are about to have $825 billion of our money used for practically everything except economic stimulus. Call it what you want, but in reality, it is Washington, D. C. politics in all it’s rotten glory.
I am really scared… and upset. I don’t think the majority of Americans want this (at least if they are aware of everything it entails)… yet it hardly matters because we’ve lost the power to even have a voice to stop it.
I didn’t make a list of all the things that are in this bill because I was writing the post before I went to work and was rushed for time. The pork that is included is very expensive and has nothing to do with actually stimulating the economy.
You are right when you say we have lost our voice to stop this madness. President Obama may very well put on the good face of bipartisanship, but Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid don’t even bother. Pelosi scares me especially because she seems so willing to drag our entire country to the left as far and as quickly as she can.
I beleive there was widespread concensus for a stimulus bill 10 days to two weeks ago and I think that concensus still exists — but NOT for the bill we got from the House. It is a stuffed turkey and needs some massive trimming. Pelosi and company have taken the opportunity to load up on social policy spending that they try to reationalize by claiming it somehow saves jobs, improves economic efficiency, or such other nonsense as they can contrive. This bill needs to be about stimulating job growth, consumer confidence, and consumer spending. It needs to be completely coordinated by Fed plans to many the mortgage crisis and restore home purchasing, and Treasury plans to remove toxic assets from banks and impose restraints on spending while holding them accountable to use TARP funds to continue lending. The current mess is definitely long-term scary and I’ll hope between the Senate and the White House there are good people who will exercise restraint and focus on what’s important and what’s been promised.
Mike,
Do you suppose it is genetic or something in the water in Washington? It seems like those folks can’t help themselves when they get the chance to stuff spending measures into a bill that has nothing to do with the money they are wanting to spend.
They’re always focused on the next election and need something to show the folks back home whether its a bridge to nowhere or a new daycare center. The “I’ll vote for yours if you vote for mine” is a serious flaw in the democratic process.
If you guys want to screw around with the stimulus, I have a stimulus builder at my website. I don’t know what Obama bought for his 800B, but, if we’re going to borrow some mega bucks from the Chinese, we may as well get some good stuff with it. Caution : The stimulus editor calculates not only the total bill, but how much you will have to pay (excluding interest).