What economy is this supposed to stimulate?
By Brian Kirwin | Sunday, February 1st, 2009 | PolicyRasmussen polls show support for the Democrat economic stimulus plan to be down to 42%, thanks to independents dropping from a 37-36 split to a whopping 50-27 opposed!
Democrats support it (74%) and Republicans don’t (18%). Let’s try to find out why.
Out of $825 billion dollars of an “economic stimulus” package, here are some real “job creating” provisions the Democrats are pushing:
$20 billion dollars for more food stamps.
$39 billion dollars for unemployed folks to buy health care (no, not get them a new job, just have taxpayers pay for their health care while they sit at home)
$43 billion for more unemployment checks
$4 billion for law enforcement (how that equates to job creation, I don’t know, but unions must get paid back, I guess)
$87 to avoid Medicaid cuts.
$20 billion to computerized health care records over the next 5 years
$142 billion for rebuilding schools and libraries.
$90 for roads, bridges and mass transit.
These last two shows how wrong the Democrats are in a special way. Rebuilding libraries? You gotta be kidding me.
“Mr. Democrat, how will you get our economy moving again?”
“By building libraries!”
Say what you want about roads, bridges and transit, but they build an economy for generations. Eisenhower fueled an American economy for a century with the Interstate highway system.
How that is less of a priority than taking existing schools and libraries, tearing them down, and building them over again I’ll never know.
More fun!
$5 billion in tax cuts for people who don’t pay taxes (Isn’t that like cashing in a coupon without buying anything?)
$18 billion for refundable child tax credit (meaning, if you don’t owe taxes, you still get a check. We used to call that welfare.)
Oh, let’s not forget the money for broadband internet access in rural cities. After all, dialup is what caused this recession in the first place, right?
And these are the things CNN was willing to admit. Heaven knows what else is in this thing.
Less than 3% of this “stimulus” are business tax cuts. A whole lot of it is a giant handout to people who aren’t working (as long as they continue not working), states so they don’t have to cut any of their wasteful spending, and to unions.
And let me guess. These new schools, roads and bridges will just coincidentally be in strong organized labor states, right?
This isn’t economic stimulus. This is electoral payoff.
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About the author
The right wants to jeer him. The left wants to censor him. Moderates usually want both. Brian Kirwin is a political consultant and public relations strategist in Virginia Beach with a lightning-rod flair. Brian also serves on the VB Arts & Humanities Commission and frequently appears on Hampton Roads theatrical stages, if only to prove that all actors aren’t liberals. Kirwin’s columns stir up debate and hit the political scene with no punches pulled.
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6 Responses to "What economy is this supposed to stimulate?"
What you can do:
Familiarize yourself with the bill: $850 Billion, 1588 pages, and counting… somebody needs to read it!
S. 1: American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s111-1
Or
ReadTheStimulus homepage http://www.readthestimulus.org/
Contact Our Senators:
Warner, Mark R. – (D – VA)
Contact homepage: http://warner.senate.gov/contact/contact.cfm
Contact Office phone: (202) 224-2023
Webb, Jim – (D – VA)
Contact homepage: http://webb.senate.gov/contact/
Contact Office phone: (202) 224-4024
I recommend contacting our Senators by both means Contact Homepage and Phone.
The Senate was wrong on the TARP bill, they are wrong on the Stimulus!
[...] Over at Bearing Drift, Brian Kirwin asks today: What economy is this supposed to stimulate? [...]
it’s really rather ridiculous but a prime example of what happens when Republicans become so fiscally irresponsible that the country turns to Democrats to clean things up. Bait & switch, baby.
Its amazing frankly. The indpendents that delivered Obama the White House are turning faster and faster away from his policy moves thus far. GITMO and now the “stimulus” bill, which of course its really a spending bill. If the Dems are not too careful those independents will surely be shopping come the 2010 Congressional cycle.
President Reagan said the best way to understand a trillion dollars is to imagine a crisp, new stack of $1000 bills. If you had a sack 4 inches high, you’d be a millionaire. A trillion-dollar stack of $1000 bills would measure just over 63 miles high.
Does anyone realize how small this stimulus bill is actually going to spend in relation to our GDP?
This is like drinking a sip of beer and saying it’ll make you drunk.
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