Stimulus Package Passes… But…
by Matt at Jan 28th, 2009
Tonight, a very bad stimulus package passed the House…
The good news is every single Republican in the House voted against it.
Democrats lose on bipartisanship, and own the economic downturn the package will cause.
Toby Harnden at the Telegraph (UK) says (and I agree) it is a slap in the face to Barack Obama.
Barack Obama got the $825 (or $1.2 trillion over a decade) stimulus package through the House of Representatives but the 244 to 188 vote is a hollow victory indeed. Without a single Republican voting for the bill, his high-profile visit to Capitol Hill on Tuesday came to exactly naught - at least on the House side.Obama vowed to change Washington and usher in a new post-partisan era. The the mood music and optics were pitch perfect as he trekked up to the Hill. Republicans praised his gesture, welcomed his sincere demeanour and appreciated his willingness to listen.
Problem was, he wanted only to listen and did not want to act on what Republicans said. When he was asked if he would re-structure the package to include more tax cuts, he reportedly responded: “Feel free to whack me over the head because I probably will not compromise on that part.”
Barack Obama wants to make the same mistakes FDR did that kept this country in a depression. I am glad there weren’t any Republicans who fell for Obama’s my-way-or-the-highway-bipartisanship.
Congressman Chris Lee gives us ten facts you need to know about the stimulus plan and some assessments of the plan from various independent sources. Earlier today he said on the House floor:
“We can’t spend our way to prosperity and continue to add to an already bloated federal government. The bill does not provide adequate tax relief to small business and middle-class Americans who are on the front lines of this crisis. For every dollar this plan devotes to small business, six dollars are used to create new government programs. …
Congrats to Mr. Lee and his Republican and Democrat colleagues who recognized this bill was bad news and will not help the economy.
Hats off to Republicans (and the 11 Dems) who voted against this so called stimulus package. A “Stimulus” plan where a large portion of plan doesn’t kick in until 2010? Not to mention$335 mil for STD awareness? $400mil for Global Warming research? Typical liberal spending plan if you ask me. Let’s pass a real stimulus plan that goes into effect asap to actually “stimulate” the economy and includes some serious tax cuts to create jobs. Sadly the likes of Reid, Pelosi, Frank, Dodd and I’m afraid our new President don’t get it…