February 07, 2009

About those job losses

Krugman:

Now the centrists have shaved off $86 billion in spending — much of it among the most effective and most needed parts of the plan. In particular, aid to state governments, which are in desperate straits, is both fast — because it prevents spending cuts rather than having to start up new projects — and effective, because it would in fact be spent; plus state and local governments are cutting back on essentials, so the social value of this spending would be high. But in the name of mighty centrism, $40 billion of that aid has been cut out.

My first cut says that the changes to the Senate bill will ensure that we have at least 600,000 fewer Americans employed over the next two years.

Our only hope is that the House Democrats refuse to agree to the Senate version, and that Obama's townhall meetings next week can swing the public to their side. In those meetings he's got to point out that this "centrist" plan will do what Krugman says, and say that's not acceptable.

Posted by Linkmeister at February 7, 2009 04:30 PM | TrackBack
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