ECONOMIC STIMULUS PACKAGE - BRIBE AMERICANS NOW, BANKRUPT AMERICA LATER
by Andrew Zuelke
2008

Next month, Congress will start mailing out rebate checks to taxpayers hoping people will go on a spending binge and pump those checks right back into the economy. The reasons this “idea” will be ineffective at best, ridiculous at worst are so obvious as to not need to be explained to anyone in this party, but so people know the CPoW doesn’t criticize without cause, here is what’s wrong with the Democrat/Republican-sponsored so-called economic stimulus package:

• We’ve tried this already.

This was done back in 2001, also to stimulate the economy. Back then it was $300 for individuals, $600 for married couples. Surveys showed that approximately 21% of the people actually went out and bought luxuries, as Congress planned. An overwhelming 78% paid off credit cards and other bills or saved it. There’s no reason to believe it will be any different this time around.
When people are worried about the economy or their jobs, they’re going to hold on to whatever money they can. That’s just common sense.

• Congress borrowed the money.

We are already $9 trillion in debt, so does Congress do the responsible thing and cut some government spending? You know better than that! They borrowed the money, $160 billion of it. So Congress borrows money to give us money? Isn’t that like maxing out your credit card to go on a shopping spree?

• Other things that would work far better, Democrats and Republicans refuse to do.

It seems to the CPoW that the things doing the most damage to our economy are (a) many of the “free” trade deals which have dismantled our middle class, industrial base and threatened our sovereignty, (b) a paper “currency” backed by nothing and the inflation caused by printing more of it whenever the government wills, (c) the interest payments on and the national debt, (d) excessive taxation which punishes investment and is hostile to incomes and profit of any kind (which means less jobs and therefore less incomes), destroying any means of saving money (the more income you earn, the more taxes you pay) and a tax code so messed up even the IRS doesn’t understand it, (e) members of Congress from both parties who have openly and more than willingly disregarded and disobeyed the Constitution and the limits placed on their powers by same, (f) failure to stem the flow of illegal immigration which saps our nation’s treasury by needing to pump more money into federal/state social programs, compelling Congress to get even more money from taxpayers, leaving all of us with even less disposable income. Address these issues, Congress, and you’ll have your economic stimulus.

• This is shameless, obvious election-year bribes-for-votes by career incumbents.

It’s a lie to suggest otherwise. Putting our nation even deeper in debt just so politicians can get themselves re-elected is despicable…and it is hardly being done for the peoples’ benefit.

• Too little, too late.

Remember the urgency expressed by members of Congress and the President? “We must ward off a recession and get these checks into the hands of taxpayers quickly to keep the economy humming,” they said in grandstanding press conferences.
Congress passed the economic stimulus package back in February. Apparently they didn’t take into account that tax time is the IRS’ busiest time of the year so the checks won’t be mailed out until mid-May.

There are other arguments that we can make against this ill-advised, posturing “stimulus” package. Even if it works 100% the way Congress and President Bush intend that doesn’t change the reality that it’s borrowed money. The CPoW believes in tax cuts offset with equal amounts of spending cuts and paying for rebate checks the same way.
In a taxpayer-financed political newsletter from March, Rep. Petri (R-Fond du Lac) writes about the stimulus package, “If more efforts are needed, I’m sure Congress will respond.” Great idea, sir. Let’s just devalue our currency further by printing even more of it and borrow ourselves even deeper in debt so we can throw more good money after bad.