Stimulus-palooza: The first wave is done
President Bush signed the economic stimulus package this afternoon. Bipartisanship reigns. Whoopee. The White House transcript is here. Raise your hand if you’re not breaking out the champagne. The lard-up was not as bad as it could have been. But the fundamentals of stimulus-palooza were wrong at the start and wrong at the signing.
Borrow and spend may be good politics, but it is bad policy. Hillary wins. Fiscal responsibility loses. And you can be assured: The second tranche is coming.
Not to mention the $1.4 billion stimulus package for Mexico and Central America that’s in the pipeline.
God save us from bipartisanship.
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I work with an office full of people who are right, left, and center. We never discuss politics, to keep the peace. But every person has said in the last week, “Oh, no, this bailout is terrible, it will bankrupt the country!”
Bipartisanship of another stripe. Everyone hates it.
Do they realize how long the country has been bankrupt?
This is INSANE!!!!!!!! Here the MSM and the leading economist are saying reccession. So what does this RINO administration do. They waste what, $146 million on a buy the vote. Then they blow $1.4 billion in aid to a country that is laden with criminals.
We are looking at a trillion dollar budget and they want to waste money. Looking at the options of the next administration, be it complete socialist or a wanna be socialist what are we to do?
Thisis not only poor judgment buy congress to support this pork, but it is incompetance by this administration to do this.
Being on a limited income of sorts do to certain reasons of health (of my making) I worry as to how I am to pay for these spend thrift plans next year and there after.
Pandering and bipartisanship go hand and hand. Just love it. How is that nice federal deficit going, boys? Any thoughts of guilt while you pander with non-existent money for votes you bought?
Have you ever just considered letting people actually taking responsibility for their actions? Oh, no, we can’t have that. They may actually learn from the experience, never agree to another shady loan and then, dear God, what would happen to the banking, mortgage, and real estate industries? The horror.
Hand raised, high. that 1.4b has really hit a nerve with me as well as 1.4b other people I imagine.
un-be-flippin-lievable
I would point out that both the Republican and Democrat politicians pushed this through. Frankly, they don’t want a recession before a Presidential election because the citizens of the USA, if their are any left with a brain, will turn them all out and start fresh.
With Bush approval rating hovering at 30% and the Congress approval rating at 22%, 3 out or 4 American citizens are totally frustrated and angry with their politicians. This is why Obama is doing so well. I predict a major sea change in November. I just can’t predict the direction.
I’ll get my check and cry all the way to the bank.
Really.
No sarcasm.
I’m taking my cue from Jorge Bush and sending my rebate check directly to Felipe Calderon – with no strings attached.
/sarc off
Just like the fans in Wrigley Field…
Who’s going to SEND BACK their “rebate” check when it comes?
Boy, this will go down in history as an example of how government messed up an economy. It isn’t the first time…and it won’t be the last, as long as politicians know that people will vote for them, when it comes to freebies and entitlements.
Someone should put together a photo montage of the typical homes that are being threatened with foreclosure… my guess is that many look like these modern “McMansions,” complete with rococoo (sic?0 steps and columns, etc….
God save us from bipartisanship.
AMEN Sister – AMEN
Well, if they’re going to send me the money, I’ll take it. BUT, I won’t be stimulating the economy with any purchases from it.
I will use it to decrease my current loan debt, because I’m going to have to pay it back in higher taxes later.
Yes.
And, those “people” may be easy but their votes don’t come cheap, grayson. We’re going to pay through the nose for this and other “stimulus” attempts by D.C.
As enraging,idiotic and insane as the bail-out is,and as counter-productive as our relationship with (our friend) Mexico is ,nothing is going to change until the voters finally wake up and throw out ALL of the incumbents.Good,bad,Liberal,Conservative,Republican ,Democrat-they ALL have to go.The conflict today is between thepeople and the government.The only power we have is the power to change our government by voting them out.The only way to keep the politicians responsive to the public’s wishes is through their fear of losing their cushy lifestyles.
I’m going to use my check as a down payment on something I can’t afford,and wait till the next bail-out.sarc.
Barry, you better believe we’re going to pay through the nose for this.
About the only practical thing to do with this so-called “rebate” is to bank it, collect interest, and turn it back in to the IRS when the taxes go up. Taxes will go up too. I know who the “rich” are…and they are us. That is, those who pay taxes. The ones who don’t pay taxes are going to get a “tax cut”. And to those who believe that they will get a tax break…Do I have a deal for you!!
Well, that isn’t exactly how I wanted to change tax brackets.
Me neither. But until we have a “Sweden” type of government, we’ll have more and more taken from us, all in the name of government compassion. It will end up with “womb to tomb” coverage, and some people, like us, will wonder…”What happened?”, as we ponder our new “Animal Farm” type of Constitution.
Technically, we all are. Whatever the amount of your “rebate” you’ll have to pay that much more in federal taxes in 2009(or get that much less of a return as the case may be). All they’re even really doing is letting you borrow your’e own money(gee, who thinks it would be so popular if they had put it that way?).
Question for those here who are smarter than I am. I live in Alabama, and the legislature is trying to pass a bill to keep the state from collecting state tax on those rebate checks; but won’t that $600 be income that I’ll have to report and eventually pay state tax on anyway?
Won’t that be the ultimate irony…paying state taxes on your National government rebate check.
I’m going to buy a house with my couple of hundred, and thanks to all of you for helping me pay the rest after Hillary digs in your pockets to cover the bad loan. Make that a really big house…
Ouch! An even bigger smack in the face – “Yeah! We’re gonna tax you for getting back some of your money the Feds are giving back to you, before they raise your taxes to get it back again.”
“birth to euthanasia” – they can save money on both ends.
You know, we really shouldn’t be having so much fun poking fun at this “stimulus” crap.
It is serious stuff, after all.
We already work the first five months of they year, before we ever really start to realize any money for ourselves. Da*n. Now I’m really depressed.
Now, you probably won’t believe this…but I’ll tell you anyway.
In the Middle Ages, the average peasant…you know, that downtrodden, abused farmer on Lord-owned land…only paid 60 days of work for his “slice” of the land. He worked for 60 days for the benefit of the aristocrat that owned the land, and the rest of the year was his. Look at us! We pay 5 months in “rent” for “our land” to the government. Now, who’s the winner?
Yup, Better make it a really big house because when the taxes go up again and those of us that pay them lose our homes we are going to need a place to live. I hope you like cats.
Amen.
My check will go to the mortgage on the Florida condo.
Getting our own money back is stimulus?
Boy, is our system freaking upside down when the people feel privileged to get back what was already theirs! And, of course, the scum bags in DC will take all the credit and accept all the adulation…
I wonder…weren’t almost all the Democrats on board with this “give-back?” I think they were…anyway, isn’t this an admission by the Dems that putting more money into the pockets of the American taxpayer (to spend themselves) bolsters the economy?
How can they be for this, but against cutting taxes? It’s based on the same principle, isn’t it?
Whoa, whoa, whoa, right_on! Are you trying to use (heaven forbid??) logic! Now be a good little sheeple and be grateful to the big strong government for giving you money
/sarc
I thought I saw something on the news here in Oklahoma saying the state won’t tax this extra refund like they did a few years ago. Thanks Oklahoma..
I just keep shaking my head at our government. They really are a bunch of idiots. Are there no decent people out there to run the government?
And anyway – was this really needed? It won’t stimulate the economy. And for anyone who has studied basic economics, there are always ups and downs. It’s how the economy rights itself. Having the government step in only makes everything worse.
It’s depressing really…..how badly the government seems to mess things up!
What are the 9 scariest words in the English language?
“We’re from the government and we’re here to help.”
Ee2k
Doh! Ee2k – eeek
Of course no one will send it back. It is going to the professional victims, illegal aliens, welfare deadbeats, and is being taken from those of us who pay the brunt of the taxes and won’t get a nickel because we work for a living.
“pre-abortion to euthanasia” – Got to get both abortive methods in there, infant and geriatric.
Want another Florida condo, zorro?
Where is it? I like the NW Panhandle area.
Not in the Panhandle. It is 5-10 minutes from Disney. I’m tired of hanging onto it.
With the crap coming down the pike with whatever administration comes next, I meed to trim back on unnecessary things, like a vacation condo. Who can afford that, if my taxes are going to go up to pay for what GWB and the next administration are going to give away.
I’ll take my check and buy some 2nd amendment rights…thank you goes to my children, your children and all of our grand children for these bullets. Those rights may just come in handy(no doubt in my mind) and soon.
It is all about politics and not the economy.
Want to know how to get the economy going again? Offer a tax break for those investing 50,000 dollars or more in the stock market and a 10 percent tax break to any retail corporation (retail not meaning oil)that can increase their profit margin by 7 percent in 6 months. Want to see the economy take off? There’s one way.
Addendum, I meant gross revenue, not profit margin. Anyone can increase their “profit margin” by cooking the books.