PERRY/Federal spending takes hard left
Eleven Blue Dog Democratic congressmen joined Republicans in voting against the spending bill, including Mississippi’s Gene Taylor. Taylor appeared on CNN and called the bill “nuts” and said, “President Obama ran on change. This isn’t change…this is just more of the same.”
Democrats Bennie Thompson and Travis Childers from Mississippi voted for the measure. Republican Gregg Harper opposed it saying, “I wish Congress would open their eyes to the wasteful government spending that is contained in this bill and that will drive the country further into debt. The American people know we cannot borrow and spend our way back to prosperity.”
The Congressional Budget Office scored the bill’s total cost to taxpayers at over $1.17 trillion. Initially touted as a Franklin Roosevelt style infrastructure funding bill – highways, dams, water, sewer, railroads, parks – liberals hijacked the bill. There is still plenty of spending, but not much on infrastructure and not immediately. Only 15 percent of the new spending would impact the economy this year.
The measure includes $137 billion for 32 new government programs. There is $15 billion for college scholarships, maybe to stimulate the purchase of pizza, beer, and ramen noodles. For kids not in college, there is another $1.2 billion for summer youth jobs.
The trickle up economics provides $20 billion for food stamps; $5 billion for public housing; $1.76 billion to help the homeless; $200 million for Meals on Wheels.
ACORN, under federal investigation for election irregularities, gets its share from $750 million in the Neighborhood Stabilization Program.
Brian Perry
Neshoba Democrat
2/5/9
Magnolia Tribune
