What was the purpose of the stimulus bill ?

[kentuck]

Was it to create jobs? Did it work? I recall that the debate about the stimulus bill was that it was not big enough. Why is the President now proposing a "freeze"? Is that supposed to create more jobs? How?

Is the deficit now a bigger issue than the issue of jobs? Is the idea that cutting the deficit will increase confidence in the business community and they will create more jobs? Why the turnaround?

Or is there a bigger strategy here that I am missing??

[MercutioATC]

1. "When in danger or in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout."

No, it doesn't make any sense.

[sandnsea]

2. It hasn't even been announced yet

So there's no way to know exactly what he is proposing. But many areas of the budget were nearly doubled last year, so it's not too unreasonable to ask some of those agencies to hold the line a bit going forward.

Google just about any economist and you'll find most all of them in agreement that the bail-outs and stimulus saved this country from a fate worse than the Great Depression. People who whine about are sincerely tools because if you look at their complaints, most of them could have come straight out of the mouth of any Republican.

[frazzled]

3. There is a jobs creation bill that has passed the House and ready in the Senate now

From today:

Senate Democrats are considering a jobs bill in the range of $80 billion.

The package is subject to change, but a draft summary of proposals under discussion includes small business credits, tens of billions of dollars in infrastructure spending, energy efficiency programs, money to hire police and firefighters and billions to boost lending to small businesses.

A Senate Democratic aide on Monday confirmed the package is under consideration. The proposals will likely be discussed at the Senate Democratic lunch on Tuesday, the aide said.

Senate Democrats have pledged to take up jobs legislation early this year, after the House passed a $174 billion bill late last year. Democrats are looking for ways to bolster the economy, which is suffering amid 10 percent unemployment and record levels of people who have exited the labor market.

http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/77943-senate-dems-consider-80b-jobs-bill

[TomCADem]

4. The Stimulus Was Intended, And Did, Replace Some Of The Spending Lost To The Recession...

However, this is a huge recession. So large, that we suffered from some deflation. The fact of the matter is that the recession would have been far worse without the stimulus, without the bailout of the auto industry, and without efforts to stablize the banking system. I know some folks complain that we are still in a recession, which is valid. But, just a year ago, the big question was whether our entire economy would meltdown, and whether any banks would remain viable. Perspective is a commodity in shot supply on an internet board, but look up stories from November 2008 through March 2009, and you will get a flavor of the borderline panic we were experiencing as the economy shed 600,000 jobs a month.

[Enrique]

5. the deficit has always been a bigger issue than jobs

for some people.

[bridgit]

6. It played like a perfect white collar crime/poker buddies knock over casino like Ocean's 11

A three page distress motivated command to hand over 800bil$'s no questions/no strings attached sounds like the perfect note to slip a bank teller

[doc03]

7. CNN has been doing quite a hit job on the Stimulus, one

wasteful project after another. It doesn't matter if only 1% of the projects were a waste that's the ones the news media picked out and it makes the entire program look bad. I doubt another Stimulus could be passed now. The Stimulus and the HCR were both worthy projects but by the time Congress got done with them they were both a total PR disaster.

[The_Casual_Observer]

8. It's simple, they are taking the teabaggers seriously,