WP op-ed, Governor Jon Corzine: Only a Bold Stimulus

[DeepModem Mom]

Only a Bold Stimulus
By Jon S. Corzine
Wednesday, December 24, 2008; Page A11

....I've spoken at length about the current economic crisis with other governors, including Deval Patrick (Mass.), David Paterson (N.Y.), Jim Doyle (Wis.), Jennifer Granholm (Mich.) and Ted Strickland (Ohio). We agree that our states -- however diverse they may be -- have similar needs and problems that should be addressed by the economic recovery package being developed in Washington. That can best be achieved if Congress and the new administration keep in mind the following principles:

First, the states, local governments and the federal government must be full partners in the recovery process. Working with counties and municipalities, states have mechanisms in place to pump stimulus funds into the economy quickly and responsibly. But we don't have the federal government's financial capacity or borrowing authority. Any recovery effort should reflect our mutual strengths.

Second, the package should be large. Some estimates put the cost of the economic crisis next year at $700 billion, or about 4 percent of gross domestic product. To offset this, the cumulative value of the stimulus plan should be $1 trillion over two years. This is a large sum, but if the spending is executed effectively, it should be a significant investment in our country's physical and human resources that will pay long-term dividends while also creating and saving jobs.

The stimulus should be roughly divided into five categories: infrastructure, countercyclical programs, housing, education block grants and middle-class tax cuts....

***

In 1932, Roosevelt warned against being of "faint heart, fearful of change, sitting tightly on the rooftops in the flood." His words are still prescient today. We must be bold -- $1 trillion bold. America has abundant resources and a generous, ambitious spirit. If we work together, we'll emerge stronger and more prosperous than ever.

(The writer, a Democrat, is governor of New Jersey.)

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/23/AR2008122302001.html

[Hydra]

1. It's not that much money

And in truth, we wouldn't be having this problem if the bailout beneficiaries were actually doing their job and loaning...oh, wait, why don't we actually start paying people instead of making them get loans? It sounds to irrational to work! :sarcasm: