A Stimulus Plan We Can Believe In?

Call it a bailout, call it a recovery plan, call it a spending bill, call it pork-laden, or call it a stimulus plan; by any other name it will be as controversial. On that you can count!

Yesterday, the Senate approved an $838 billion economic stimulus plan. Loosely titled: “A bill making supplemental appropriations for job preservation and creation, infrastructure investment, energy efficiency and science, assistance to the unemployed, and State and local fiscal stabilization, for fiscal year ending September 30, 2009, and for other purposes,” the plan will now go to a joint committee where Senate and House members will try to hammer out differences between the Senate Bill, and the $819 billion “American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009,” passed by the House two weeks ago.

The stimulus bill has become the latest symbol for how things get done in Washington, or don’t. Throughout the post-election, pre-inauguration period, President Obama spoke of ending the partisan in-fighting that has so often paralyzed erstwhile good intentions in the past. He met with Republicans on several occasions, ostensibly to invest in normalizing inter-party relations, and stemming incidents of rank bickering between Democrats and the loyal opposition party.

Of course the world shifted on its axis January 20th; returned to normal that is. As a result, the House passed its bill January 28th, 244-188, with 11 dissenting Democrats, and more notably, without a single Republican vote. So much for Bi-partisanship; perhaps the Senate could deliver.

Well, in a manner of speaking it did. The Senate Bill passed by a vote of 61 to 37. Three moderate Republican Senators, Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe, Maine, and Arlen Specter, Pennsylvania, joined two Independents, Joe Lieberman, Connecticut, and Bernie Sanders, Vermont in voting with 56 Democrats. One seat, Minnesota, is currently vacant (Neither the incumbent, Norm Coleman, nor the challenger, Al Franken has been seated), and Republican Senator Judd Gregg, New Hampshire, has been nominated to be President Obama’s Commerce Secretary, and did not vote.

Immediately after yesterday’s Senate vote, a conservative PAC, The National Republican Trust, vowed to fight GOP Senators who supported the bill by backing primary challengers in their upcoming races. Senator Specter appears to be the most at-risk, as he is up for election in 2010. Senator Snowe does not face re-election until 2012, and Senator Collins was just re-elected in November, and does not run again until 2014. All three have indicated they may not vote for the final bill, if as anticipated, significant spending proposals are added.

Early polling by CNN indicates 54% of Americans favor the stimulus plan, while 45% oppose it. From Congress’ view, perhaps more importantly, the same poll shows 32% of Republicans favor the plan. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Nevada, projected the committee could reach agreement as early as 24 hours. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, California, was more guarded, and suggested it could take as long as the end of the week. Meanwhile, Representative Steny Hoyer, Maryland, House Democratic leader, added he thought discussions could run into the middle of next week. In one National barometer for how the Plan was viewed, stocks tumbled 400 points after Secretary Geithner presented the revised plan for restructuring financial institutions; lower than at any time since November. The drop was widely attributed to the lack of specifics in how the plan would deal with a host of thorny issues such as mortgages, toxic assets, and thawing a frozen credit market.

While Republican members of Congress are solid in voicing and voting their opposition to the two Stimulus proposals, some key supporters are emerging from the States. Governor Charlie Crist, Florida, joined President Obama to promote the Stimulus Plan in Fort Myers, Florida, yesterday, while Monday President Obama delivered the message in Elkhart, Indiana, where unemployment is 15.3%. By making an appearance to introduce the President at the Florida stop, Governor Crist, who was once thought to be a possibility to serve as John McCain’s running mate, underscores the fact there is bi-partisan support for the package.

Governor Schwarzenegger, California, has joined a group of 18 other Governors (including the Virgin Islands) in sending a letter to President Obama, backing the Stimulus Plan. One of the distinctions that gubernatorial support will bring is the recognition that as you survey on the ground, closer to the people, there is recognition, or at least a belief, by some Republicans in key leadership positions that the Stimulus Plan is essential to any desired recovery.

One jaded view of what has taken place so far is that the sound and fury offered in the guise of the loyal opposition is merely obstructionism, cast as indignation over profuse spending and the lack of more tax cuts. Indeed, such a view would be a jaded. Surely no patriot, Country First, genuine article American would penalize fellow Countrymen, and jeopardize our National recovery to win a political point. Right?

I’m done; holla back!

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For more detailed information on a variety of aspects relating to this post, consult the links below:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/11/washington/11web-stim.html?_r=1

http://topics.nytimes.com/topics/reference/timestopics/subjects/u/united_states_economy/economic_stimulus/index.html

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/02/10/stimulus.gop.pac/index.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/29/us/politics/29obama.html?_r=1&fta=y

http://www.politicker.com/california/31287/schwarzenegger-other-governors-back-federal-stimulus-plan

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/10/AR2009021003916.html?hpid=topnews

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-stimulus_0211feb11,0,4267015.story

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-markets11-2009feb11,0,3970013.story

http://www.miamiherald.com/457/story/898189.html

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2009-02-10-obama-florida_N.htm?loc=interstitialskip