December 21, 2009

U.S. Democrats muscle through year-end jobs plan

Includes $50 billion for public works projects

WASHINGTON, D.C.

President Barack Obama’s Democratic allies in the House on Dec. 16 muscled through a year-end plan to create jobs, mixing about $50 billion for public works projects with another almost $50 billion for cash-strapped state and local governments.

The unemployed would get continued benefits. But conspicuously absent from the plan were Obama’s recently announced initiatives to give Social Security recipients $250 payments, a tax credit for small businesses that create jobs and a program awarding tax credits to people who make their homes more energy efficient.

Not a single Republican voted for the plan, which passed on a 217-212 vote after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi worked the floor for an hour before it passed. The measure now goes to the Senate, which won’t consider it until next year and which generally has a smaller appetite for such deficit-financed economic stimulus measures.

Given increasing anxiety among Democrats over massive budget deficits and the party’s poor marks with voters for its free-spending ways, the measure could face a tough road. Almost 40 Democrats voted against the plan, mostly moderates and junior members elected from swing districts.

According to documents released by Democrats, the measure would cost $154 billion. But there’s also another $20 billion from the federal treasury to keep the highway trust fund afloat.

The measure blends a familiar mix of money for highway, transit and water projects and aid to help communities retain teachers and firefighters. There’s also $41 billion for a six-month extension of more generous unemployment benefits and $12 billion to renew health insurance subsidies.

Many of the ideas are renewals of programs started in February’s $787 billion economic stimulus bill, which has earned mixed reviews from the public as unemployment has hit 10 per cent.

Democrats claimed $75 billion of the measure is “paid for” with unused money from the Wall St. bailout. Republicans countered that the bill is really financed with red ink since the bailout money would otherwise revert to the Treasury to lower the deficit.

Associated Press

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