Stimulus Aims to Pump Life Into US Economy

Congress acts on the largest economic recovery plan since Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal in the 1930s. Transcript of radio broadcast:
13 February 2009


This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.


American lawmakers agreed this week on an economic recovery plan. Negotiators got it below seven hundred ninety billion dollars. They cut tens of billions from versions in the Senate and the House of Representatives. The compromise measure needed final passage in Congress for President Barack Obama to get his wish to have it by Monday to sign into law.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi at a news conference Friday after the House passed the final version of the economic stimulus bill

About thirty-five percent of the rescue plan is tax cuts for individuals and businesses. Sixty-five percent is government spending. That includes more than fifty billion dollars in aid to states. And it includes money for roads and bridge projects as well as investments in health care, education and energy. The plan also calls for expanded aid for people without jobs or health insurance.
The economic recovery plan is the largest since President Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal during the Great Depression in the nineteen thirties.
Republicans continued to criticize Democrats for not including more tax cuts. They say the plan contains wasteful spending that will do little to create jobs and will leave mountains of debt for future generations.
The Senate passed its version this week with just three Republican votes. There was no Republican support in the House, even for the final bill approved Friday.
On Thursday, President Obama said his plan will save or create more than three and a half million jobs over the next two years. To what extent that goal will be met is not clear. But that is the number of jobs lost since the recession began in December of two thousand seven. Unemployment has reached seven and six-tenths percent, the highest rate since nineteen ninety-two.
The president spoke in Illinois to workers at Caterpillar. The maker of earth moving equipment recently announced twenty-two thousand job cuts.
The president told the workers that the head of the company said the stimulus plan could save some of those jobs. Chief executive Jim Owens later told reporters, however, that even more jobs may go.
President Obama returned to his home state of Illinois to celebrate the two hundredth birthday of President Abraham Lincoln. But while he was away from Washington, his nominee for secretary of commerce announced that he was withdrawing.
The president nominated Judd Gregg, a senator from New Hampshire, last week to be the third Republican in his cabinet. But Senator Gregg said he had differences with the Democratic administration on policy issues including the stimulus plan.
An earlier choice for commerce secretary, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, withdrew because of a legal investigation. Two other Obama nominees withdrew over tax issues.
White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said it became clear that Senator Gregg was not going to support some of the president's economic aims. He said the senator offered his name for the job and "We regret that he has had a change of heart."
And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. I'm Steve Ember.

Read more...

Understanding Your Needs and that of Others - Awareness of Society Today

Prioritizing has always been an important factor in my work at IBM. Usually as there will be for Barack Obama as President, my job requires the ability to be able to multi-task, sometimes requiring the help of others to make sure the tasks get done on time. But the first thing you must understand is where you need to begin. In the economy today, I find it especially important and necessary that people realize that the situation is so drastic, that it is truly impossible to accomplish some of our goals alone. I need help. Most middle-class people like myself need help. This country needs help. Admitting that you are in need of help sometimes is hard to do because we are proud people. In my job, I find doing things by 'status quo' is not always the best way. Change is needed and welcome at IBM, just like 'change' will come to this country because of our President-Elect Barack Obama. He seems to know how to prioritize and is not afraid to stick his neck out stating his economic plan even before he leaves office. I look forward towards listening to his speech later today on his economic plan. Even though he is still a President-Elect, he is already hard at work, trying to prioritize the needs of the country and putting the economy at the top of the list. He knows as I know that in an important job such as the Presidency, you may kind of live in a bubble, as you are surrounded by people to help you accomplish your goals and protect you, but at the same time, you cannot look at the world with tunnel vision. You must constantly try and find ways to improve things that require improvement, and in the dawn of a new Presidency, many things need to be accomplished to benefit the people of this country. Ending the war in Iraq is one of those important things, because we need to re-unite the people of this country again by sending home the troops now in harms way serving our country in the countries of Iraq and Afghanistan. Because of their service, these soldiers deserve the best medical care they may need now and in the future and should never worry again on medical premiums. President-Elect Obama wants to provide health care for all, as all Americans deserve this most needed benefit so that all can have a healthier and happy life. I believe that I am more fortunate than so many others as I work for IBM, have a very secure job, and the health benefits that will protect me and my family. But unfortunately, health benefits come with a price tag, a price that seems that the majority of people cannot afford. Everyone needs health care, and it must be affordable. A most unfortunate statistic that too many people have become part of in this modern day are the growing number of the unemployed, and their numbers are growing by staggering numbers every day. These people, now without jobs, cannot afford health insurance, as the premiums are just too high to handle alone. Therefore, Americans now are forced to live without the health coverages they need to protect their families. But now there is 'hope' with Barack and the new incoming administration. Together, we as a people will display to the entire world that we can get out of these ruff times and do it in a responsible fashion. The world economy will grow because of the grass roots leadership that started in Iowa just under 2 years ago when Barack commenced running for office. Working for a first-class company like IBM, I too was hit pretty hard by the economic conditions that we face today. My 401k retirement plan has been taking a beating for at least the last 18 months, and now I know that I must continue to work and not retire early, but with the 'change' at hand with Barack at the helm, I now have the confidence that my savings will grow again, and that this new President will have an everlasting impression on the peoples of the United States and the world. Less than two weeks to go, and a historic inauguration will take place, one that I wish that I could witness. Whether I could be there or not, I wouldn't miss it for the world.

Read more...