Thread: Obama's stimulus package hinges on GOP vote

Updated: 43 minutes ago
Text size: increase text sizedecrease text size
Obama's stimulus package hinges on GOP vote
House set to decide today on $825 billion mix of new spending, tax cuts

By Liz Sidoti | The Associated Press
11:24 AM EST, January 28, 2009

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama said today he's confident that a multibillion dollar plan to kick-start the ailing economy will survive a crucial House vote.

He wasn't anxious to say how much Republican support he'll get when the roll is called, however. Democrats enjoy a sufficiently comfortable majority that they likely won't need GOP help when the vote happens later in the day. Obama had said earlier that Republican support would back up his argument that a new style of bipartisan politics is needed in Washington.

Asked whether he was confident of getting Republican support, he replied only: "I'm confident we're going to get it passed."

The president talked about prospects for the $825 billion measure during a picture-taking opportunity in the Roosevelt Room where he was surrounded by supportive CEOS from major businesses.

Related links

*
Obama seeks support for stimulus package from Capitol Hill
*
Size of economic stimulus plan questioned
*
Geithner puts limits on bailout lobbying
*
Obama's first-week performance

Do you like what you've seen so far from President Barack Obama during his first week on the job?
Yes No Not sure
o View current results

"These are people who make things, who hire people," Obama said. "They are on the front lines in seeing the enormous problems in our economy right now. Their ideas and their concerns have helped to shape our recovery package."

Obama said their presence underscores why it is so important to "act, and act swiftly" in getting the nation's economy going on.

His program is expansive -- and expensive. Republican support has been in doubt, and remained in doubt in the hours leading up to the vote.

House Minority Leader John Boehner wouldn't say this morning how he thought the vote would turn out. He did emphasize anew that GOP members are worried about billions in domestic spending that "has nothing to do with creating jobs or preserving jobs."

"We're for more than just cutting taxes," Boehner, R-Ohio, said on ABC's "Good Morning America."

Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky told CNN that "where we have differences with the House Democrats is that the package just doesn't seem to reflect our priorities, nor the president's."

McConnell said the proportion of tax cuts versus spending increases in the version being pushed by Democrats has been "crammed down" to about 20 percent of the total instead of the 40 percent envisioned by both Republicans and Obama.

Senate committees were working on a separate version of the measure that enjoyed only slightly more support from Republicans. Congressional leaders have promised Obama they would send him the measure, which could be the single largest bill ever to go through Congress, by mid-February.

The president's first days in office have been dominated by his efforts to drum up bipartisan support for the sweeping plan to help pull the country out of the year-old recession that he inherited from former President George W. Bush. The increasingly troublesome economy -- and the federal government's response to it -- is the first major test of Obama's presidency; how he handles the volatile situation, and the effect of his stimulus package on the economy, could well set the tone for his first year in office, if not his entire term.

He is casting the measure as the first step toward turning around the moribund economy while laying the foundation for long-term objectives, like developing alternative energy sources and rebuilding the country's highways.

The House measure includes about $550 billion in spending and roughly $275 billion in tax cuts in hopes of spurring the economy and helping those directly affected. Much of the spending would be for items such as health care, jobless benefits, food stamps and other programs that benefit victims of the downturn.

As debate on the measure began yesterday, most Democrats trumpeted it as the elixir for what ails their jobless constituents and pressed for passage; Republicans generally griped about "insane" programs that would be funded in the plan and "minuscule" tax relief for small businesses as they urged opposition.

The legislation "isn't an economic stimulus bill but a rampant spending spree," said Rep. Harold Rogers, R-Ky.

Democrats made one small change, voting to delete $20 million intended for renovating the National Mall. Republicans had criticized the expenditure as wasteful.

Associated Press Special Correspondent David Espo contributed to this story.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/ba ... 3274.story

Did anyone watch that sham of a speech Czar Obama I gave to his American subjects in front of a musical quartet while being whored by big business after me met with the big wheels of industry and hi tech? I wonder how many more H1B visas he will give to these professed stalwarts of industry for cheap foreign labor? Another fraud, Rep Maloney of NY was on Cpsan this morning and I wanted so badly to unload but couldn't afford to waste cell phone minutes as that is my only phone. I wanted to tell her if you are so concerned about putting Americans back to work and providing affordable and available health care why did you just pass a measure that would provide health care for the 20 million illegal aliens in this country who will bring their immediate and extended families and the 5,000 to 10,000 illegally crossing our border every week which will further burden a health care system with LIMITED resources already on the verge of insolvency in part from the massive flood of impoverished humanity crossing our border? Under the old bill applicants were required to provide proof of citizenship and identity which has been stripped from this bill and now are required to present only an easily doctored social security number encouraging more identity theft (Justice department estimates 75 percent of illegal aliens are involved in identity theft) and rewarding those who perpetrate it? What do you say to the American who applies for health care but is denied benefits because an illegal alien is using their social security number resulting in identity theft which reaches far beyond health care as many illegal aliens used stolen identities to acquire mortgages on which they defaulted and bought cars and other personal items? One of the your party leaders when asked this stated "We will have to live with this as this is the best we can do".
I also wanted to pose to her if you are so concerned about putting Americans back to work why wasn't there one single solitary Democrat who stood on the floor of the chamber and said hey if we are serious about putting Americans back to work shouldn't we insert a provision or amendment stipulating jobs and other benefits will go only to US citizens and legal residents? Why did it take 2 Republicans including Jack Kingston from the district next door to mine to do this? When 552,000 Americans lost their jobs in December why did you allow the importation of 132,000 H1B visas and plan on importing 3 million more in the next 3 years negating any proposed job gains from this Ponzi scheme called a stimulus? Your party says we have entered a new era of government openness, transparency, honesty and responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars but ignores the 400 billion dollars annually spent for illegal alien health care, welfare, food stamps, education, unemployment assistance and other benefits much of it fraudulently obtained using stolen identities. This package provides no provisions to ensure any benefits go only to needy Americans and legal residents like home heating assistance which is going to millions of illegal aliens while a 93 year old WWII veteran froze to death in his own home because the local electric co-op shut off his electricity as he couldn't afford to pay his bill while thousands of other veterans lose their homes or are forced to sell their possessions because they can't obtain the necessary care, treatment and disability payments while again illegal aliens pour across our open border and are rewarded with free health care and other benefits for violating our borders, sovereignty, laws and using stolen identities to illegally apply for jobs and other benefits. All this and the billions proposed for projects to appease your left wing base and corporate America illustrates tat you are not serious about reviving this economy and don't care about suffering Americans. It is all about pay back to unions, big labor and corporate America who returned you to office and enlarged your majority through kickbacks and payoffs to judges, election officials and support of groups as ACORN currently under investigation for massive voter fraud; also a major player in Democratic wins.
You party like the GOP has abandoned it's core values. It has morphed from the party of what can I do for my country to what can my country do for me characterized by a lack of accountability and responsibility for one's actions, loss of self reliance, runaway government caused by excessive spending, a bloated bureaucracy, eliminating the incentive to become productive members of society by awarding welfare to those who refuse to work resulting in a massive socialist welfare state and open borders for cheap labor and votes without any regard for suffering and struggling Americans losing their homes, jobs, pensions and health care falling deeper into the abyss of poverty and despair while also left to tumble in midstream.