Obama to propose $50 billion in infrastructure spending for stimulus

the GOp better filibuster this crap.

unseen on September 6, 2010 at 2:33 PM

If you can’t see the difference between the “loot” staying in your own pocket and the “loot” going to Washington to be fed into some big federal program, I can’t help you.

Jenfidel on September 6, 2010 at 3:00 PM

loot is loot. bush 43 “stimulus” programs were one time checks. yes he gave the people the loot but the fact is he shouldn’t have our loot to begin with. besides his tax cuts in 2001 and 2003 the rest of bush policies from TARP, to the stimulus, to the spending like medicare part D were classic liberal polices.

And while supply side tax cuts will work they also need other parts to work well. like a sane energy policy instead of sending $300-600 billion/year of wealth overseas to buy our oil. like a good nuclear/coal policy to build more energy plants so our electric bills can come down. Instead of restrict supply which drive up prices. until partisans understand that both parties are economiclly dense and are more interested in gaining power then in promoting sane economic polices for the betterment of the country we are in trouble.

yes the GOP plans are better than the dems but neither are good sound economic plans.

unseen on September 6, 2010 at 3:53 PM

If the government doesn’t inject public spending into the mix, you may see the economy falter into a double dip recession of even great severity that the first. And that will cause even a deeper drop in tax revenue, increasing the deficit even more.
bayam on September 6, 2010 at 5:01 PM

it depends on what your goal is. People look at a recession as the worst thing that can happen. however if you believe in the free market a recession is simply a part of the free market cycle. recessions in and of themselves are not bad. recessions make the free market realign resources. It makes capital flow from unproductive areas to more productive ones, it wipes out bad busniess practices, in short recessions are needed in free market economies.

when governments try to stop the recession bad things can and usally do happen.

Is there a need for unemployment insuance? yes but why is the gov the one to control and pay this out. Insuranc eis insurance. there is life insurance, health insurance, car insurance. there is a market out there for unemployment insurance. either paid for by the business or worker. Get gov out of the unemployment insuance business. thus gov expenses during recessions will not go “up” as much.

Change the areas of where the gov gets its revs from income to say sales or tarrifs thus government will not be as buffered from unemployment.

another expense of gov that grows in recessions is welfare, food stamps, relief etc. this can not be wholly done away with but if gov tax policy focuced on increasing charites during good times the bad economic times will not be as bad and the need for government will not be as great.

Most of the government functions can be done better and cheaper form the private sector. It is the government’s job to pass laws to ensure the private sector fullfills those needs. Not to take over those needs.

Cutting government spending and downsizing government departments and turning over government responsibilites to the private sector will increase privte sector employment, will make the limited resources better able to handle the downturn etc.

the auto bailouts is a prime example. without government intervention GM and chrysler would have been bankrupt. those workers would have been laid off. the fact that the states were on the hook for unemployment nenifits entered into the picture of why the gov bailedout these companies.

Now if the gov let those companies fail, other companies with a better business plan would have taken those companies sales, would have had to expand or buy GM plants. would have had to hire those workers and the better newer plants of say Ford would have produced cheaper better cars.

Instead gov allowed the free market to freeze. No changes in the market and no betterment of the cycle.

Recessions bring economic pain but its something we need.

just like we need deflation. trying to avoid pain always leads to failure.

unseen on September 6, 2010 at 5:30 PM