What is the most likely outcome regarding the stimulus at this point?

[Rocknrule]

What I hope will happen is that it passes as it is and Obama and/or other Dems are able to add in some of the "pork" cut out by the Rethugs (first time I've ever used that phrase, for the record) later on. What do you think will be the outcome?

[Vincardog]

1. The Lichens will continue to fight every useful provision until it is barely effective at all.

Hopefully the Lichens will oppose themselves out of the conversation soon.

[MercutioATC]

2. It'll pass with some, but not enough, of the pork cut out.

...and it will be a disaster. At most, a short-term speed bump.

This economy needs some real stimulus if they don't want to see the real bottom and this bill doesn't provide it.

[Parker CA]

3. I'm guessing it will pass, go to conference, have some education and possibly other cuts added back

in, it will then get final approval, go to the desk of our President, and it will be signed.

[old mark]

4. Pass, and some of the "waste" put back in, such as the rail i

and school improvements. I think it will help, but of course it will not be an overnight miracle, and the Publicans will attack all the way through Obama's first term.

I also predict the Publican party will lose more seats in both houses of congress and a few more governorships, and they STILL won't understand why.

mark

[underpants]

5. It will pass. It will be seen as a win for Obama. It will work.

All memory of Republican opposition will be scrubbed from the public record

[dkofos]

6. Death to America.

[Zodiak]

7. My honest assessment?

It will be partially stimulative, but not stimulative enough. Regardless of it being a very big bill, a lot of it was watered-down into ineffectiveness. Our return on the investment will not be what was planned, and it will probably need another supplemental bill. The good thing is that people will see that it was partially successful, and Obama is smart enough to highlight what works and cut away what does not work...as he has said time and time again.

Overall, we will be okay, but there will be at least one more battle on this, and it will be framed exactly as the Republicans big push in 2006...the "surge". All of the debate on TV two years from now is going to be "did the stimulus work", and I promise you that the Republicans will be in full swing trying to convince us that it didn't. We have to win that battle in order to pass what is needed to supplement that stimulus and get America on its own two feet again.

So I think that we slowed down a lot of progress by this show of "bipartisanship", but unfortunately in Dumbfuckistan, we have to put on such a show in order to justify not having to put on such a show later on.

Most major economists realize that in order to get out this gigantic hole we find ourselves in, we have to go BIG on stimulating the economy. We did a lot compared to what was possible last year, but we have some more work to do. No magic bullets, no quick fixes, and we must fight tooth and nail to extract political capital from it because the Republicans are going to try to make its success "debatable".

[uponit7771]

8. Gets revised a bit then thrown at GDP hopefully getting banks to lend their 778 billion in excess...

...reserves they built up since august 08.

It's a shame, bank in the Great Depression the banks got ran on and didn't have excess reserves now they have them in the billions and are holding on to them for dear life.

[uponit7771]

9. Specter just voted yes and so did Snow...