Dems Stop All Efforts To Trim Stimulus

From the economic mavens of the New York Times:

Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, right, accompanied by Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., left, and Sen. James Webb, D-Va., testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, Monday, Feb. 2, 2009, before the Wartime Contracting Commission hearing into Iraq inspector general Stuart Bowen’s critical account of the Bush administration’s blunders in post-war reconstruction efforts.

Centrists in Senate Push to Cut Billions From Stimulus

February 6, 2009
By DAVID M. HERSZENHORN

WASHINGTON — Anxious over the ballooning size of the proposed economic stimulus package, now at more than $900 billion, lawmakers in both parties are working on a last-minute plan to strip tens of billions of dollars from the bill.

The effort is being led by two centrist senators, Ben Nelson, Democrat of Nebraska, and Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, who say they would like to pare from $50 billion to $200 billion from the package. The final Senate vote on the stimulus package is expected late on Thursday,

Among the initiatives that could be cut are $50 million for the National Endowment for the Arts, $14 million for cyber security research by the Homeland Security Department, $1 billion for the National Science Foundation, $400 million for research and prevention of sexually transmitted diseases, $850 million for Amtrak and $400 million for climate change research. But so far, none of the suggestions come close to being enough to shrink the package on the scale proposed…

Ms. Collins, one of just a few moderates left in the diminished Republican minority, and Mr. Nelson, one of the most conservative members of the strengthened Democratic majority, have teamed up before to bridge partisan gaps, including an effort in July 2007 to change the mission of American troops in Iraq while not setting the hard deadline for withdrawal opposed by President Bush…

On Wednesday, Ms. Collins and Mr. Nelson met together at the White House with President Obama, who earlier in the day had met one-on-one in the Oval Office with another Republican moderate, Senator Olympia J. Snowe, also of Maine.

Ms. Snowe personally delivered a list of cuts, totaling about $100 billion, that she said should be made. On leaving the White House, she said it was imperative that “every provision has a job creation component.”

But even as Mr. Obama expressed continued willingness to compromise, he warned critics of the stimulus bill that they were standing in the way of his agenda, and he urged Congress to act fast.

“I’ve heard criticisms of this plan that echo the very same failed theories that helped lead us into this crisis, the notion that tax cuts alone will solve all our problems, that we can ignore the fundamental challenges like energy independence and the high cost of health care and still expect our economy and our country to thrive,” he said.

“I reject that theory,” Mr. Obama continued, “and so did the American people when they went to the polls in November and voted resoundingly for change. So I urge members of Congress to act without delay.” …

Later, in a series of votes on amendments to the bill on Wednesday evening, Senate Democrats easily beat back a number of efforts by Republicans to vastly change the stimulus measure by stripping out spending programs and broadening the tax cuts.

In a number of those votes, the Democrats were joined by Ms. Collins and Ms. Snowe, as well as Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania and George V. Voinovich of Ohio…

Ever notice whom the New York Times calls “centrists” or “moderate” Republicans?

Later, in a series of votes on amendments to the bill on Wednesday evening, Senate Democrats easily beat back a number of efforts by Republicans to vastly change the stimulus measure by stripping out spending programs and broadening the tax cuts.

In a number of those votes, the Democrats were joined by Ms. Collins and Ms. Snowe…

Somehow they always turn out to be Republicans who vote along with the Democrats, even against their own expressed wishes – indeed, even against our troops in the field.

But of course that is all bi-partisanship means to The Times.

It’s the same kind of Orwellian newspeak that says repeats the canard that garnering 52% of the vote without any clear agenda is now a resounding mandate for whatever Mr. Obama now decides he wants to do:

“I’ve heard criticisms of this plan that echo the very same failed theories that helped lead us into this crisis, the notion that tax cuts alone will solve all our problems, that we can ignore the fundamental challenges like energy independence and the high cost of health care and still expect our economy and our country to thrive,” he said.

“I reject that theory,” Mr. Obama continued, “and so did the American people when they went to the polls in November and voted resoundingly for change. So I urge members of Congress to act without delay.” …

Hugo Chavez would be proud.