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AND since we hold our conservative values dear, we might have a thing or two to say about politics... and we can almost guarantee it won't be politically correct.



Wednesday, January 28, 2009

The NON-Stimulus Stimulus Package

Update Wednesday Evening January 28:
Bad news: The bill has just passed the House of Representatives.
Now it will go to the Senate.
The good news: Not one single Republican voted for it. Good for them.

Yeas: 244
Nays: 188 EVERY SINGLE Republican and including 11 Democrats

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Government is NOT the answer!

It is imperative that every citizen of the United States with one iota's worth of common sense and any shred of fiscal conservative fiber in your body give your state Representatives a call today or contact by e-mail. When you do --- urge them to vote NO for the (NON) stimulus package today.

You can look up the name and contact information of your Representative here. Please, Please take a few minutes of your morning to do this today.

Taken from Glenn Beck's research information:

What is the money being spent on-general breakdown between infrastructure, tax cuts, etc…? Some highlights of the package, by the numbers:

• $825 billion total (as of 1/15/09)
• $550 billion in new spending, described as thoughtful and carefully targeted priority investments with unprecedented accountability measures built in.
• $275 billion in tax relief ($1,000 tax cut for families, $500 tax cut for individuals through SS payroll deductions)
• $ 90 billion for infrastructure
• $ 87 billion Medicaid aid to states
• $ 79 billion school districts/public colleges to prevent cutbacks
• $ 54 billion to encourage energy production from renewable sources
• $ 41 billion for additional school funding ($14 billion for school modernizations and repairs, $13 billion for Title I, $13 billion for IDEA special education funding, $1 billion for education technology)
• $ 24 billion for "health information technology to prevent medical mistakes, provide better care to patients and introduce cost-saving efficiencies" and "to provide for preventative care and to evaluate the most effective healthcare treatments."
• $ 16 billion for science/technology ($10 billion for science facilities, research, and instrumentation; $6 billion to expand broadband to rural areas)
• $ 15 billion to increase Pell grants by $500
• $ 6 billion for the ambiguous "higher education modernization."

And here is an even further breakdown:

Energy

$32 billion: Funding for "smart electricity grid" to reduce waste
$16 billion: Renewable energy tax cuts and a tax credit for research and development on energy-related work, and a multiyear extension of renewable energy production tax credit
$6 billion: Funding to weatherize modest-income homes Science and Technology
$10 billion: Science facilities
$6 billion: High-speed Internet access for rural and underserved areas Infrastructure
$30 billion: Transportation projects
$31 billion: Construction and repair of federal buildings and other public infrastructure
$19 billion: Water projects
$10 billion: Rail and mass transit projects Education
$41 billion: Grants to local school districts
$79 billion: State fiscal relief to prevent cuts in state aid
$21 billion: School modernization ($15.6 billion to increase the Pell grant by $500;
$6 billion for higher education modernization)
Health Care
$39 billion: Subsidies to health insurance for unemployed; providing coverage through Medicaid $87 billion: Help to states with Medicaid
$20 billion: Modernization of health-information technology systems
$4.1 billion: Preventative care Jobless Benefits
$43 billion for increased unemployment benefits and job training.
$39 billion to support those who lose their jobs by helping them to pay the cost of keeping their employer provided healthcare under COBRA and providing short-term options to be covered by Medicaid.
$20 billion to increase the food stamp benefit by over 13% in order to help defray rising food costs.

Taxes

Individuals: *$500 per worker, $1,000 per couple tax cut for two years, costing about $140 billion.
*Greater access to the $1,000-per-child tax credit for the working poor.
*Expansion of the earned-income tax credit to include families with three children *A $2,500 college tuition tax credit.
*Repeal of a requirement that a $7,500 first-time homebuyer tax credit be paid back over time.

Businesses:

*An infusion of cash into money-losing companies by allowing them to claim tax credits on past profits dating back five years instead of two.
*Bonus depreciation for businesses investing in new plants and equipment
*Doubling of the amount small businesses can write off for capital investments and new equipment purchases.
*Allowing businesses to claim a tax credit for hiring disconnected youth and veterans

When is the money going to be spent, and on what?

The government wouldn't be able to spend at least one-fourth of a proposed $825 billion economic stimulus plan until after 2010, according to a preliminary report by the Congressional Business Office that suggests it may take longer than expected to boost the economy.

The government would spend about $26 billion of the money this year and $110 billion more next year, the report said. About $103 billion would be spent in 2011, while $53 billion would be spent in 2012 and $63 billion between 2013 and 2019.

• Less than $5 billion of the $30 billion set aside for highway spending would be spent within the next two years, the CBO said.
• Only $26 billion out of $274 billion in infrastructure spending would be delivered into the economy by the Sept. 30 end of the budget year, just 7 percent.
• Just one in seven dollars of a huge $18.5 billion investment in energy efficiency and renewable energy programs would be spent within a year and a half.
• About $907 million of a $6 billion plan to expand broadband access in rural and other underserved areas would be spent by 2011, CBO said.
• Just one-fourth of clean drinking water projects can be completed by October of next year.
• $275 billion worth of tax cuts to 95 percent of filers and a huge infusion of help for state governments is to be distributed into the economy more quickly. [Note: The CBO's analysis applied only to 40 percent of the overall stimulus bill, and doesn't cover tax cuts or efforts; a CBO report outlining all of its costs is expected in the next week or so.]
• The Obama administration said $3 of every $4 in the package should be spent within 18 months to have maximum impact on jobs and taxpayers; if House or Senate versions of the bill do not spend the money as quickly, the White House will work with lawmakers to achieve the goal of spending 75% of the overall package over the next year and a half.

[Source: AP: Three-quarters of stimulus to go in 18 months; January 22, 2009; Bloomberg News: Much of Stimulus Wont Be Spent Before 2011, CBO Says; January 20, 2009; link]


Who will be spending the money? Will the states be receiving any money to spend, community organizations? Churches?

The economic stimulus plan now moving through Congress would shower billions of federal dollars on state and local governments desperate for cash:
• The House stimulus bill includes an extra $87 billion in federal aid to state Medicaid programs. • It allots some $120 billion to boost state and city education programs.
• There's $4 billion for state and local anticrime initiatives in the legislation, not to mention $30-plus billion for highways and other infrastructure projects.
• $6.9 billion to help state and local governments make investments that make them more energy efficient and reduce carbon emissions.
• $87 billion to states, increasing through the end of FY 2010 the share of Medicaid costs the Federal government reimburses all states by 4.8 percent, with extra relief tied to rates of unemployment.
• $120 billion to states and school districts to stabilize budgets and prevent tax increases and deep cuts to critical education programs. Overall, about one-quarter of the entire $825 billion recovery package would be devoted to activities crucial to governors, mayors, and local school boards - making them among the plans biggest beneficiaries.

Glenn Beck's sources are listed and there is lots more information on his site. You can link to it here.

Michelle Malkin also has every Representative and their phone number listed along with her article entitled Kill the Bill, Melt the Phones!

If you've never let your voice be heard ... today is the day to stop what you are doing and speak up.

7 comments:

Meems said...

I've e-mailed my Senators as well even though they aren't voting today. If this passes the House they will be next.

My Representative happens to be one of the few that didn't vote for the first stimulus package and is standing AGAINST this one. I e-mailed him to thank him for his vote and his service to his constituents.

Here's what his website has as an example of an e-mail that can be sent to your Representative...

In our 70% consumer-driven economy, I do not believe that government is the only solution. We need pro-growth policies that will grow the economy, not the government. We need to create jobs, not more debt.

A recent Fox News poll found that 52% of voters said that the most effective way to improve the economy was by individual and business spending, while just 19% said government spending. Yet, 66% of the $825 billion stimulus plan announced by Speaker Nancy Pelosi is dedicated to more government spending.

Please support the American people and middle class families by supporting the Economic Recovery and Middle-Class Tax Relief Act of 2009, which cuts personal and business taxes, expands the per child tax credit and cuts government spending, so our children and grandchildren are not saddled with even more debt (future tax increases).

Anonymous said...

Thanks for this alert Meems. I feel pretty helpless at times. Giving a voice to my opinion by articulating it to my representatives always makes me feel that have at least done something. I spoke with my congressman's office this morning, and will be following up with email.

Anonymous said...

I am very proud of the Republicans in the House standing up for conservative values on this issue. That is huge for our party and step in the right direction.

Amazing how the press is spinning it that they are trying to thwart Obama's "noble bi-partisan" efforts. When in actuality nothing about his efforts have been bi-partisan as he has not compromised or conceeded to any of the things the republicans wanted to change. In was a mere show of and a political move to get Reps on board spin the the topic and eventual be able to finger point that more than Democrats were on board. So much for "change".

Patricia said...

Fortunately, our congressman is also a republican who voted no. My 17 year old daughter was his campaign manager in our county. (He arranged for her to meet President Bush at the airport, but at the last minute, Bush cancelled, and Emily met Cheney instead.) Emily will most likely intern in his DC office sometime over the next two years. He voted against the pay raises and the stimulus package. He also signed the letter to Obama, along with 104 other representatives, asking Obama to not sign the Freedom of Choice Act. Here is a pdf copy of that letter. You might want to see if your congressman signed that letter and contact him about that, as well.

Bluegrass Pundit said...

Stimulus bill moves us closer to nationalized health care and rationing

The House of Representatives approved an $819 billion economic stimulus package Wednesday. The party line vote was a blow to Barack Obama's alleged desire for bipartisanship. All the Republicans and 11 democrats voted against the bill. One thing in the bill that went mostly unnoticed was a new bureaucracy called the Federal Coordinating Council for Comparative Effectiveness Research.

Rissalee said...

Here's a link to read Rush Limbaugh's bipartisan stimulus plan:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123318906638926749.html

marmee said...

thanks for the easy access to contacting our reprent. an senators. it is important to let them know what the "people" are thinking.