Why now? Why didn't they do this in the first place?

[TheMuse]

That is my question regarding the new jobs and infrastructure initiative. Wouldn't it have made more sense to do this from the very beginning? A very large infrastructure bill should have been the key part in the stimulus. It would have accomplished a few key goals.

1) It would have put people back to work. Easy enough.

2) There would have been an effect on the economy as a whole as the suppliers for the project would have seen an increased demand for their goods and services (as well as their suppliers, and so on, and so on).

3) We have roads that are crumbling, bridges falling down, and an energy grid that is in desperate need of upgrading. We could have been well on our way to a smart grid by now.

4) It would have put additional tax dollars (via all the people that are now hired and paying taxes, as well as the increased economic activity as a whole increasing profits, and therefore more tax revenue).

It just seems to me that Obama's economic team did not grasp what was actually going on. Sure they passed the stimulus, but there was too large a percentage of tax cuts to appease Republicans and bailouts.

Is $50 billion even enough now? Is it too little too late? And of course the Republicans are going to jump on it in the election cycle to claim "look, even more government spending". It just fits right into their narrative (not that I am fighting the necessity of these programs, just the timing).

[Uben]

1. BEcause the pukes would have blocked it

Now, they will be forced to go along or risk losing votes.

[phantom power]

4. The GOP is still going to block it.

They aren't going to hand the Dems a victory like that two months before an election.

[MH1]

16. Blocking it 2 months before the election might have consequences

it may be that the reason for now vs. then is simply that

[Uben]

24. That's right!

And, it will cost them votes, too. Voila! The dems aren't going to get a bill like that passed, but making the pukes vote against small business will hurt them badly.

[barbtries]

6. they would block it then

they will block it now
they will never throw their support behind anything a democratic president proposes. they just don't roll that way, you know, in the best interests of the nation they supposedly serve!

[TheMuse]

9. Exactly

Obama could find the cure to cancer, and they would ask why he hates Chemotherapists so much.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

19. You don't think people who want jobs aren't going to be pissed about that?

Don't forget - Americans have notoriously short memories (which is why we're even having a discussion of Republicans gains in November in the first place). Why make Republicans block this in March and allow the people time to forget it ever happened when you can put it front and center in September and October?

[barbtries]

25. regardless of when the republicans do the blocking,

it should be front and center come campaign time. it should be hammered home over and over and over and over. yes americans do have lamentably short memories, but we can help them remember.

[TheMuse]

8. They will just use this in their diatribe

Of "OMG more gov't spending". And that is what they will use as their shield when they try and block it.

The other measures, such as the 100% tax credit on R&D spending will be much harder for them to try and fight against. But they have never shied away from looking like hypocrits before.

[asdjrocky]

20. So it was politics?

That's what kept the children hungry? Great. Keep the kids hungry so we can get a few more votes.

[TheMuse]

23. I agree

It is the difference between politics and governing. Today our "leaders" are in the mode of contstant politicking, and not leading and governing. A leader, well one with a good economic team, would have recognized this earlier, and put a plan in place.

Yes Americans have a very short memory, but if this is a great program (it can be if it is 5 to 10x the size), then put it in place earlier, and you will get credit for putting people back to work. You will create lifetime democrats (just as FDR did).

But in truth, I am probably too hopeful, and there would have been some other narrative in place by the Repukes, and the uninformed masses would have latched right onto it.

[The_Casual_Observer]

2. By the time it was worked of in the congress, we got what we got.

None of this new stuff has any chance of passage either.

[Imajika]

3. They did...

...it was in the first stimulus. They had lots of infrastructure money in the original package.

This is essentially just more stimulus.

The first bill was not enough and this additional 50 billion will probably not be enough either.

[BeFree]

5. Eh?

It is called buying votes. Duh~

There is an election coming up, that is why they waited until now.

[TheMuse]

7. And that is what sucks

This should have been the push from the beginning until holding back this "magic bullet", that isn't going to be enough just to try and win votes.

You want to know what also would have won votes. Putting people back to work. Earlier.

And the Repugs are going to try and block it. They would have tried to block it a year ago, or even two. The Dems needed to (and still need to) get their act together to overcome it. Until they learn how to do that, the obstructionism will continue.

I mean come on. The Repugs had a smaller majority for 6 years, and still got everything they wanted passed.

But the $50B isn't going to be enough. It needed to be half of the original stimulus.

[BeFree]

12. Hey

I'm a socialist. Everybody should have equal jobs, vacations, houses and real peace.

We have the best government money can buy, and they waited until now because people will be selling their votes and support over the next two months.

And it will be two years before it happens again. The time is now.

[TheMuse]

14. No, I understand

Why now from a political perspective. It is an attempt to buy back the votes of some independents, while not giving this enough time in practice, you know, in case it doesn't work right away.

But from my perspective that is politics, and not governing. It is not leadership.

[BeFree]

22. I know

I also long for a Utopian type government.

Yes, it is modern politics. And played well. I wish great success on Obama and failure for the NObamas.

[notesdev]

10. on Obama's economic team....

just look who is on it and you can tell why this admin's economic policies have been a miserable failure.

[TheMuse]

11. +1 to you

Not sure if it would have made a large difference, but I think Volker should have had a much larger say in economic policy

[Hannah Bell]

13. $50 b over 10 years = $5 B/yr.

[TheMuse]

15. Exactly

It is only the appearance of doing something, when it is actually a drop in the bucket.

[kentuck]

17. Because they did not think the economy was this bad...

No need for jobs programs if the unemployment is not going beyond 8%...

[Bonhomme Richard]

18. Maybe he's giving them the bait. Maybe he wants to show.....

just how obstructive the republicans are during the election cycle while it is fresh in everyone's minds. No one is lost on the fact that Americans have a very short memory and the Pugs bet on that. Let's have the debate right up to the election.

[doc03]

21. There were infrastructure projects in the first Stimulus, they

were supposed to be shovel ready. From what I hear most of the money is still sitting there waiting
to be allocated. I have come to the conclusion Obama needs to fire every economic and political advisor he has. We need jobs now I don't give a damn if he spends a trillion dollars on infrastructure. You just don't start building roads, the engineering studies have to be made, then you have all the environmental impact studies and then the contracts need put out for bid. If you had $50 billion today there wouldn't be ground broken on any of that stuff for at minimum 2 years. What they need to do for one thing, the people that have used up all their unemployment give them a f----g job even if it is picking up papers along the Interstates. We would be a lot better off paying a million people $15.00 to pick up papers than a paying $75 an hour to a few thousand construction workers. Whoever is calling the shots in DC has to be the most politically tone death people on earth.

[bobbolink]

26. WHY did they cut Food Stamps rather than DOUBLING them???

Besides the suffering of hungry people, which matters not to this administration, for every $1 spent on food stamps, $1.74 is returned to the local economy.

Wouldn't that make much better sense?

Or is it the plan to punish poor people for the sins of the rich?

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

27. rope-a-dope

[blindpig]

28. Because capitalists get precedent over workers...

in a Capitalist society.

It is clear that in this society profit margins are much more important than the wellbeing of the working class. If the government started hiring millions the capitalists could not keep pushing wages down, can't have that.

$50b ain't jackshit, try $1t, oh wait, that was given to the financiers, or the Pentagon, or something.

It is good to know where you stand, we are standing on our own.