Exclusive: Obama stimulus reduced our pain, experts say

[babylonsister]

Exclusive: Obama stimulus reduced our pain, experts say

By Paul Wiseman and Barbara Hansen, USA TODAY


President Obama's stimulus package saved jobs — but the government still needs to do more to breathe life into the economy, according to USA TODAY's quarterly survey of 50 economists.

Unemployment would have hit 10.8% — higher than December's 10% rate — without Obama's $787 billion stimulus program, according to the economists' median estimate. The difference would translate into another 1.2 million lost jobs.

But almost two-thirds of the economists said the government should do more to spur job growth. Suggestions included suspending payroll taxes for Social Security and Medicare, increasing spending on infrastructure, enacting a flat tax on income and extending jobless benefits.

The economists expect the jobless rate to remain in double digits until the third quarter.

David Berson, chief economist at PMI Group, worries that the housing market and the economy will suffer when the government's tax credit to first-time home buyers expires in April and the Fed stops supporting the housing market by purchasing mortgage-backed securities by March 31.

Bill Cheney, chief economist at John Hancock Financial Services, is relatively optimistic. He sees unemployment falling to 8.9% by the fourth quarter of this year. Cheney says other economists are "nervous Nellies," shell-shocked by the length and depth of this downturn. They've forgotten that "the deeper the recession, the faster you come out of it."

more...

http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/2010-01-25-usa-today-economic-survey-obama-stimulus_N.htm

[cleveramerican]

1. and almost nobody knows it.

because we have done a piss poor job of getting this point across.

[babylonsister]

6. You're right; Dems can be their own worst enemies. They stink

at getting important info into the media, though the media plays a big part in not bringing good points up.

[cleveramerican]

7. we spend so much time and energy answering back the other side

we forget to stridently defend and explain ourselves.

Its THE thing we need to get a hold of.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

11. who is our media man (or woman?)

[ShortnFiery]

2. Oooh, EXPERTS tell us that? ... We must believe Big Brother Experts or no Chocolate Rations

next month, aye? :silly:

[Gin]

3. I got extended unemployment...so it helped me..and I know

there were many jobs SAVED because of it.

[ShortnFiery]

5. A long term job ... bringing back jobs from China would help all of us more.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

13. yes and we need to EXPORT goods

our trade deficit is awful

[Zynx]

18. We actually export a fair amount. The problem is that we consume way too much.

We would be exporting more if other countries didn't manipulate their currencies. It's entirely possible that if everyone had free floating exchange rates that we would be in balance.

[phleshdef]

8. Dismissing those who are more educated than yourself is a right wing hallmark.

[ShortnFiery]

9. So is simplistic labeling.

:crazy:

[Hello_Kitty]

14. Milton Friedman was a highly educated man and GWB has a graduate degree from Harvard. eom

[Zynx]

17. I suppose you dismiss people with PhDs in Physics, Chemistry, and Biology as well.

Screw expertise and knowledge because there are some examples of educated idiots.

[ShortnFiery]

4. Wow! Experts do say?

Oh my, that's TALENT. :evilgrin:

[paulk]

10. that's kind of like the doctor telling his patient

that instead of amputating his leg he'll only need to amputate his foot...

Obama was handed the opportunity to affect real change - instead he went with Wall Street instead of Main Street -

Now that the political price for that is becoming clearer, it seems he is taking a new tack - listening to folks like Volker and Warren instead of the Goldman Sachs team. Let's hope this is more than just window dressing -

[Rosa Luxemburg]

12. the Chinese are doing a similar thing

and seem to have come through. I agree more information should have been put out on the stimulus and jobs.

[Clio the Leo]

15. Kick for the evening crowd! NT

[Cha]

16. Thanks for some reality..instead

the internet posters' version.

[Arkana]

19. You won't hear about this in the media, no you won't.