So I guess you know “they”‘ve “trimmed” the “stimulus” bill.
Said bill shall be the first great triumph of The One, as he restores the faith of the downtrodden American people, as well as the standing of the United States in the world. “Kids? You noticing all this plight?” – Clark W. Griswold, National Lampoon’s Vacation
Here’s what’s still in the bill passed by the House on Friday. Keep in mind, this is the improved, leaner and meaner version (thanks to Senator Tom Coburn for compiling this list):
- $8 billion for high-speed railway (including an earmark for an Los Angeles to Las Vegas MagLev)
- $1 billion for the “FutureGen” not-ready-for-primetime near zero emission plant in Illinois
- $53.6 billion for the “state stabilization” slush fund
- $1.3 billion for Amtrak
- $24 million for USDA buildings and rent
- $176 million for renovating Agricultural Research Service buildings
- $290 million for flood prevention activities
- $50 million for watershed rehabilitation
- $1.4 billion for wastewater disposal programs
- $295 million for administrative expenses associated with food stamp program
- $1 billion for the 2010 Census
- $200 million for public computer centers at community colleges and libraries
- $650 million for the DTV converter box coupon program
- $360 million for construction of NIST buildings
- $830 million for NOAA research and facilities
- $2 billion for Byrne JAG program
- $10 million to combat Mexican gunrunners
- $125 million for rural communities to combat drug crimes
- $1 billion for the COPS program
- $1 billion for NASA
- $300 million to purchase scientific instruments for colleges and museums
- $400 million for equipment and facilities at the NSF
- $3.7 billion to conduct “green” renovations on military bases
- $375 million for Mississippi River projects
- $10 million for urban canals
- $5 billion for weatherizing buildings
- $2 billion to develop advanced batteries for hybrid cars
- $3.4 billion for fossil energy research (possibly including an earmark for FutureGen)
- $5.1 billion for environmental cleanup around military bases
- $5.5 billion for “green” federal buildings
- $300 million for “green” cars for federal employees
- $20 million for IT upgrades at the Small Business Administration
- $200 million to design and furnish DHS headquarters
- $210 million for State and local fire stations
- $125 million to restore trails and abandoned mines
- $146 million for trail maintenance at National Park Service sites
- $140 million for volcano monitoring systems
- $600 million for the EPA Superfund environmental cleanup program
- $200 million to clean up leaking underground storage tanks
- $500 million for forest health and wildfire prevention
- $25 million for the Smithsonian Institution
- $50 million for the National Endowment for the Arts
- $1.2 billion for “youth activities” (for “youth” up to 24 years old)
- $500 million earmark for NIH facilities in Bethesda, MD
- $1 billion for Head Start
- $32 million for home-delivered nutrition services
- $160 million for volunteer programs at the Corporation for National and Community Service
- $500 million earmark for the SSA National Computer Center in MD
- $220 million for the International Boundary and Water Commission, U.S. and Mexico
Do you feel stimulated yet?
Does grabbing the counter and greasing up count?
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Bend over, here it comes again!
$1 billion for the COPS program…
Holy shit, that’s an expensive TV show!
Seriously though, this stimulus package is gonna stimulate Congress to increase my taxes in the near future. That I’m sure.
You got lube first?!? I didn’t get lube… [mutters to self] I can’t believe it — he got lube.
HSV is gonna get the screws on this. The NASA chunk will never make it out of Houston. MDA work will be ground into a pathetic R&D shop. Hey, but maybe I can work on helping the Arsenal get green.
I’ll bet Iran is stacking solid fuel boosters as we speak.
Where’s my check ???!!!
Bob: I’m just going to keep my hands on the counter and cross my fingers for 2010.
Scott: I kind of think they won’t try that this year, and my hope is that they’ll need the political cover of not doing it next year.
Jeremy: No great shakes. There’s sand in it.
BamaDan: Yeah, that gave me a chuckle. Huge piles of fuel, chemicals, munitions…let’s green it up.
Terri: You can’t have a check. The risk is just too great that you’d do something stupid like retire debt with it, save it, or invest it.
It’s ironic that fiscal irresponsibility- not just by pols and banks, but by everyone that lived beyond their means- is what got us into this mess and just what the economy needs to get us out. People spent their money like there was no tomorrow, saving almost nothing, and the economy kept rolling along. Now the wallets have snapped shut and things are grinding to a halt. Keynes called it the “Paradox of Thrift.” Give businesses a tax break if they bring their factories home so people will have jobs again. Even somebody making 25K a year buys stuff every now and then. You can talk up education all you want, but there will always be a segment of the population that is capable of only manual labor. There’s a reason intellegence is measured on a bell curve. Hell, do you want the nurse who’s measuring your meds to have an IQ of 90? I encounter people every day who I wouldn’t trust to babysit my DOGS! If this “stimulus” puts people to work, maybe it will be marginally worth it, but I don’t think this amount of debt is survivable.