Big Weirdo Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-stimulus_07feb07,0,1770949.story WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama and Senate Democratic leaders, propelled by news of the biggest one-month job losses in 35 years, on Friday hammered out a deal that clears the way for Senate approval of a massive economic stimulus plan.Senators said the legislation, which is a cornerstone of Obama's efforts to revive the economy, would carry a price tag of about $820 billion under the compromise deal, though the final figure was unclear. The bill is expected to cost about the same as the $819 billion approved by the House and far lower than the bill as amended on the Senate floor, which had grown to more than $930 billion. The bill had stalled amid partisan differences, with most Republicans saying it carried unnecessary spending and not enough tax cuts. But over the course of several days, a small group of senators from both parties, working with White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, negotiated the compromise, trimming the bill in hopes of winning support from a handful of moderate Republicans. Senate Democratic leaders said they believed they will have enough support to pass the legislation, though it was not clear when a vote would be held. Republicans may delay the vote until early next week, but there was little doubt about the outcome. "For the first time, there's light at the end of the tunnel," said Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), predicting that Congress would send the bill to the White House, as promised, by the end of next week. After approval, the Senate and House will have to work out their differences, then vote on a final version of the legislation before sending it to Obama for his signature. When the compromise was announced Friday evening to a closed meeting of Senate Democrats, it was greeted with applause, and Democrats emerged saying that the party had rallied behind it. The White House applauded as well. "On the day when we learned 3.6 million people have lost their jobs since this recession began, we are pleased the process is moving forward," said spokesman Robert Gibbs. Under the deal, the cost of the bill would be lowered by scaling back tax cuts in the legislation by $25 billion. In addition, lawmakers trimmed $85 billion in spending for items they believed did not belong in a stimulus package because they did not spur economic growth, such as $870 million for combating a pandemic flu. "We trimmed the fat, fried the bacon and milked the sacred cows," said Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.), a leader of the bipartisan group that worked out the compromise. However, Democrats said some of the areas trimmed were muscle not fat and hoped they might be restored in the final bill. Funding for school construction took a big hit, and aid to states was reportedly cut from $79 billion to $39 billion. "Not everybody is going to get every dollar they want, but it's still a very strong package," said Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.). "This package proves three words: 'Yes we can.' " Three GOP moderates — Sens. Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe of Maine and Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania — quickly declared their support for the compromise. But two other GOP moderates — Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and George Voinovich of Ohio — said they would oppose it. Hoping to drive their vote total up to 61, Democrats are also counting on the vote of Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), who is battling brain cancer and has not been in the Capitol since he had a seizure on Inauguration Day. He returned to Washington on Friday to be available to vote. Details of the compromise agreement were not immediately available, but it met the goal set by Obama and some moderate Republicans that the price tag end up in the neighborhood of $800 billion. There was great confusion, even among senators who wrote the bill, about the fate of amendments adopted on the Senate floor, including tax credits for people buying new cars and homes. If those are included, it could drive the cost over $800 billion. The $85 billion in tax cut savings included $5 billion by tightening eligibility for tax credits for workers and families with children, and a $9 billion savings from scaling back business tax breaks. The agreement was announced after days of frenzied, behind-the-scenes talks, involving close involvement by the Obama administration. Obama called Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid of Nevada late Thursday night. Emanuel called him five times Friday morning and joined the negotiations in person in the afternoon. Friday's release of a dire unemployment report added to the urgency of Obama's and Reid's appeal that Congress move with speed. U.S. employers eliminated 598,000 jobs in January, the report said, the biggest one-month plunge since 1974. The unemployment rate is 7.6 percent. "These numbers demand action," said Obama. "It is inexcusable and irresponsible for any of us to get bogged down in distraction, delay or politics as usual while millions of Americans are being put out of work." The White House announced that Obama would campaign for the bill early next week in Indiana and Florida. The president will also hold his first prime-time news conference Monday, giving himself another platform to push for the legislation. Offering a sample of the way Obama will likely target skeptical lawmakers, aides to the president on Friday talked about the impact of his plan on specific states—aiming, by implication, at the lawmakers who represent them. Gibbs described the loss of nearly 600,000 jobs in January as "the equivalent of losing every job in the state of Maine." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G.A.C.O.L.B. Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Good. Not cue the "bad"'s. And then the "good"'s again. Whatever, I hope it works. I mean I just deliver pizzas part-time and this **** has still hit me hard. My pay (based on tips) is down 40-60% on any given night. I'm literally struggling to pay for anything. I realize a lot of it won't actually do anything for years to come but just a repair of our confidence can get people feeling better about buying a pizza for dinner and giving me more than a dollar bill for my tip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Weirdo Posted February 7, 2009 Author Share Posted February 7, 2009 Good.Not cue the "bad"'s. And then the "good"'s again. Whatever, I hope it works. I mean I just deliver pizzas part-time and this **** has still hit me hard. My pay (based on tips) is down 40-60% on any given night. I'm literally struggling to pay for anything. I realize a lot of it won't actually do anything for years to come but just a repair of our confidence can get people feeling better about buying a pizza for dinner and giving me more than a dollar bill for my tip. I feel you. My hours were cut at work. Still looking for a part time job to help keep my head above water while still allowing me to attend class. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IHOPSkins Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama and Senate Democratic leaders, propelled by news of the biggest one-month job losses in 35 years, on Friday hammered out a deal that clears the way for Senate approval of a massive economic stimulus plan. Funny No mention of the Republican traitors Did they not hammer also?.....at least to their own heads anyway Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G.A.C.O.L.B. Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Lol. I'm shocked my drunk typing thread is getting more play than this one. I mean Who Del broke the news of the year and his thread gets no love. Damn shame. I'm sure it will blow up tomorrow though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heisenberg Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Lol. I'm shocked my drunk typing thread is getting more play than this one. I mean Who Del broke the news of the year and his thread gets no love. Damn shame.I'm sure it will blow up tomorrow though LOL I keep saying I'm going to stay out of political threads on this site - and everytime I go back on my word after reading some ridiculous or amazingly ignorant post. "Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koolblue13 Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Lol. I'm shocked my drunk typing thread is getting more play than this one. I mean Who Del broke the news of the year and his thread gets no love. Damn shame.I'm sure it will blow up tomorrow though I was thinking when I read this "wow, this is a Who Del thread?" I hear y'all though. I was working for a 4 star, top 10 in NJ restaurant last year. Tonight, I applied at Giant for the graveyard shift. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Brave Little Toaster Oven Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 dude, i worked at Giant....soooo many hot chicks come through there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koolblue13 Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 That **** might be cool at 19, but 35? Not so much. I could probably pull it off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Brave Little Toaster Oven Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 That **** might be cool at 19, but 35? Not so much.I could probably pull it off. Giant doesnt pay very well compared to any other store...if you have a Wegman's near you, apply there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AsburySkinsFan Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 I for one am glad that they reached a deal, now all the GOP Senators can't stop being such hypocrites; I hope they know that it was under Bush that we have a trillion dollar yearly deficit. Evidence: http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=217693&title=clusterf#@k-to-the-poor-house Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teller Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama and Senate Democratic leaders, propelled by news of the biggest one-month job losses in 35 years, on Friday hammered out a deal that clears the way for Senate approval of a massive economic stimulus plan.Funny No mention of the Republican traitors Did they not hammer also?.....at least to their own heads anyway The sooner the rest of my fellow conservatives realize that reaching compromise for the good of the country doesn't equate to traitorism, the better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ACW Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 The sooner the rest of my fellow conservatives realize that reaching compromise for the good of the country doesn't equate to traitorism, the better.This bill won't be for the good of the country though. Goddam economic illiteracy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tryfuhl Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 "We trimmed the fat, fried the bacon and milked the sacred cows," said Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) big surprise dude is from Nebraska heh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twa Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 This bill won't be for the good of the country though. Goddam economic illiteracy. Oh, hush your conservative propaganda. We are in agreement here,this is not much more than just another massive spending bill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burgundy Burner Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Sen. Inhofe said that this bill is 93% spending and 7% stimulus. I think that is a generous number. This is nothing but a Porkulus bill. Oink, oink. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ACW Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Oh, hush your conservative propaganda.We are in agreement here,this is not much more than just another massive spending bill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SUSkinsFan Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 I agreed with the bill when it was going to be used for the construction/improvement of roads, schools, dams, bridges, highways, state/federal buildings, etc. but when all the extra **** got put in there is when it fell out of favor with me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teller Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 This bill won't be for the good of the country though. Goddam economic illiteracy. Still, the bullcrap rhetoric is no more productive. "Traitors?" Even if it's a bad bill, that's utterly counterproductive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teller Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Sen. Inhofe said that this bill is 93% spending and 7% stimulus. I think that is a generous number. This is nothing but a Porkulus bill. Oink, oink. "Porkulus." Interesting regurgitation there, BB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cooked Crack Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Nice for them to reach a deal but I feel like this obsession with tax cuts did more harm than good. Also can someone tell me what's wrong with funding school construction? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burgold Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 What surprises me is that you guys act surprised. Stimulus Bill = spending bill. Bailout = spending bill. The language is the teaspoon of sugar to help the medicine go down. This was always about spending. You call National Endowment of the Arts support spending, I call it generating jobs at the theater, opera, and museums around the country. You call laying down broadband cable spending, I call it creating jobs for the layers, and investing in the future. You call contraception pork. That's tougher, but I do think it's got great prevtative value which would save this country lots o money in terms of healthcare, welfare, etc. Besides, think about all those people about to be hired at Trojan. Regardless, the stimulus bill was always a spending bill. It's just another word for spending. One they thought would be more palatable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twa Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 Also can someone tell me what's wrong with funding school construction? Not a thing, raise your local taxes and fund away....we do here. It should not be part of a emergency stimulus bill on the federal level. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Monk Fan Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 I have only one question about this "stimulus" package: will we be told we need another one in three months or six? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dockeryfan Posted February 7, 2009 Share Posted February 7, 2009 What surprises me is that you guys act surprised. Stimulus Bill = spending bill. Bailout = spending bill. That's true, but look at how it will be spent. There are no earmarks in the bill. At all. That was by design, so there wouldn't be any blowback on the senators. Now how will the money be spent? It'll be up to states and local municipalities. DO you think they will spend it wisely? I have less faith than if it were all decided with ear marks. Every dollar. All we will hear now is multiple stories after the fact on how the money was poorly spent. I'm actually pretty disappointed. They should have made multiple smaller bills, and really defined what they were supposed to do. But I'm still in the camp that spending was necessary/ I just wish it was more defined for specific projects, with specific job creation. Even as bad as it is, the republican idea of only cutting payroll tax was horrible in the box thinking. I just wish this bill had been better thought out. Now I have to hope local legislators spend wisely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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