The stimulus bill passed by the House and under consideration by the Senate appears to lack sixty Senate votes as it is currently written. The issue appears to center around both the size of the bill and the sections of the bill that contain spending of a non-stimulative nature. Both Parties have members who are objecting on these grounds, and it appears that the centrists have coalesced around Ben Nelson and Susan Collins, who are working to pare spending in this bill. What are some of the spending items contained in the bill that are causing problems for this group? The Washington Post lists a few:
Among the items that the Collins-Nelson initiative is targeting: $1.1 billion for comparative medical research, $350 million for Agriculture Department computers, $75 million to discourage smoking, $20 million in Interior Department funding, $400 million for HIV screening and $650 million for wildlife management.
The Senate failed to pass a $25 billion dollar increase in highway spending within that bill, and actually rejected a tax break for film producers by a wide margin. The stimulus package will need to be cut back in order to pass, and it appears that not only will the Majority Leader need to deal with the shrunken Senate Republicans, but with moderate Dems who will not agree to some spending contained in the bill. I believe the Alice Rivlin advice given in testimony before Congress that we posted on a few days ago may be taking hold. Stay tuned for a compromise that will cut untold billions from this stimulus bill, and then receive “centrist support”. McCain’s competing bill is worth about $450 billion. The number will end up “right in the middle”.
Bill Manzi.com 
Looks like right now they are playing with decimal points. Couple of billion in an 800 billion dollar bill (what’s that, .25%)? What’s a couple of billion between friends?
CBO scored 78% of the current stimulus hitting the economy within the next two years.
Has anyone noticed if there has been any playing with the tax cuts side of the equation (I haven’t seen much)? That’s when I decide they’re serious. After all, eliminating tax cuts goes directly to the bottom line of the cost of the bill.
-FM
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Your Honor,
This bill was put together to try and mix stimulus with political goals. The drive to pass the combined bill was designed to mask the passage of the political component.
I believe the first and most vocal and active opponents were the Republicans although you would not know from your piece above. I have seen a lot of Mitch McConnell on the news.
I hope the stimulus phase passes.
Jules
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Your Honor,
I know you based you opinion of Sarah Palin on her proximity to the Presidency.
Listen to the third in line for the presidency had say about 500 million people loosing jobs every week if the Stimulus Bill does not pass.
Since our population is about 400 million, I figure the rest are illegal aliens. But what happens the second week?
Jules
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Jules:
305 million. The current US population is 305 million.
But at least you’re not in line for the presidency. 😉
-FM
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Wow. If you want to hear a citizen excoriate the SEC for the failure to find Madoff when handed all the evidence, and by extension, every other failed TARP funded bank, go to CSPAN and listen to Markopolos (first 12 minutes is quite a rant).
http://www.c-span.org/Watch/watch.aspx?MediaId=HP-R-15116
-FM
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And, thanks to Jules and his reminding me of DailyKos, I bring you this article that brings us full circle. From the Wall Street Journal:
“Reimbursements Raise Tax Issues For Palin”
Wonder if she’ll pay them before she runs for office again?
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122334021713509963.html
Thanks, Jules!
-FM
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Fred,
I’m sorry I don’t pay attention to that left wing web site rag.
Jules.
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Fred,
Let’s get back on subject. The speaker of the house made ignorant statements. She said 500 million will lose their jobs EVERY week.
Can you square that?
Jules
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Jules:
Do you mean the left wing rag Wall Street Journal? I know, sometimes it’s a little shrill, but sometimes, they do have a point.
I assume from now on, you’ll refer to Ms. Palin as “Tax Cheat Palin”. Right?
(I love the days when I get a twofer, too!)
-FM
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Jules:
Yep, sure thing.
She slipped three orders of magnitude. Instead of “millions”, she should have said “thousands”. And, contrary to your statement, she says “months”, not “weeks”.
She’s obviously got the December Labor report in mind, and misquoted it.
“A sobering U.S. Labor Department jobs report Friday showed the economy lost 524,000 jobs in December and 1.9 million in the year’s final four months, after the credit crisis began in September.”
-FM
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I heard what she said. 500 million is 500 million. She’s a dope, period. It’s like Joe Biden’s 1927 TV.
By the way, you were right about the population at 305 million. I thought it was about 390 million. Sorry. She still said 500 million. She doesn’t need you to excuse her.
Jules
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Jules:
I don’t think you’re a dope for making two factual errors after spending more time on this thread than she did in her speech, and I wasn’t trying to be pedantic. I was simply pointing out that mistakes occur, and the likely source of that mistake. None of us are perfect, even (especially) you or I.
Cut the Missus some slack, won’t you, Mister Speaker?
-FM
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