•10:46 AM
A good friend of mine received this letter from Senator Dodd yesterday. It is in response to the Economic Stimulus Bill being debated presently. His response, like that of Senator Lieberman, shows that his mind is made up. Imagine what your life would be like if you, in times of trouble, with your income going way down, took out a massive loan to support yourself and hedge your bets that you would one day be able to pay off the loan. First, no bank in their right mind would loan to you. Second, that was what brought you here in the first place. And third, it wouldn't fix the behavior that got you here in the first place. I don't disagree that the government has a place in the marketplace. Those who believe the invisible hand directs all aspects of all things free-market aren't familiar with history. But those who believe that bringing our country to financial ruin will mean future prosperity also don't know their history.
We should pray for help!
February 9, 2009
Dear Mr. Sampson:
Thank you for contacting me with regarding an economic stimulus package to assist middle-class Americans. I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue.
Day after day, the economic news in our nation grows bleaker. The national unemployment rate recently surpassed 7 percent, with more than 126,000 people unemployed in Connecticut alone. Each day, more and more families in our state find themselves struggling to stay in their homes, as the rising tide of foreclosures erodes house prices. These grim facts, coupled with rising health care and energy costs and a sagging stock market, have many middle-class Americans deeply concerned. They see their retirement savings plummet, their ability to access credit drying up, and their ability to send their children to college becoming ever more difficult.
I believe that helping the middle class is the best way to jump-start our economy. As you may be aware, Senators Harry Reid (D-NV) and Robert Byrd (D-WV), introduced a $100 billion economic recovery package geared toward helping hard working Americans in November of 2008. Regrettably, this measure met substantial opposition and was not taken up by the full Senate, though Congress was able to pass legislation providing for an additional 7 weeks of emergency unemployment benefits to all states, and an additional 13 weeks on top of that to states deemed "high unemployment states." Regrettably, Connecticut is one of these states, with an unemployment rate of 7.1 percent. This small step was designed to help the millions of Americans who find themselves facing the worst job market in 17 years.
Fortunately, with the commencement of the 111th Congress and the inauguration of a new President, the focus has shifted from partisan bickering to finding real solutions to the problems facing the American people. On January 28, 2009 the House of Representatives passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, a bill which represents a serious investment in the future of the United States. The House-passed legislation contains $526.5 billion in spending on important initiatives such as infrastructure improvements, renewable energy, and other programs to create jobs. The bill's spending also makes critical down-payments on our nation's future economic health, updating our nation's energy grid, education and health care systems. The legislation also contains important funding for housing and direct aid to states with severely strained budgets, such as Connecticut. Additionally, families who are dependent upon food stamps and unemployment insurance to make ends meet will see an extension of this aid. This bill also has a substantial package of middle-class tax breaks, which will further provide fast economic relief to 95 percent of working families. Altogether, the House legislation will cost a total of $819 billion. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) predicts that the funds from this critical legislation will be pumped into the economy quickly, with 75 percent of the spending injected into the economy within 18 months of passage. So while the costs are high, I believe that the economic benefits of this legislation will be substantial, aiding million of Americans in weathering our current downturn and mitigating an ever worse economic environment.
The Senate expects to take up the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in the coming weeks. The package, which has been primarily worked on by the Senate Appropriations and Finance Committees is similar in size and scope to that passed by the House, though some key differences do exist. As the Senate begins consideration of the measure, please be assured of my strong commitment to not only investing in the middle-class which is the backbone of our economy, but also investing in our future so that economic growth benefits all Americans. I look forward to working with my colleagues to passing this bill, and working with the House to create a final package that achieves these goals in the most transparent, effective manner. Please be assured that I will keep your views in mind throughout the bill's consideration by the Senate.
Thank you again for contacting me. If you would like to stay in touch with me on this or other issues of importance, please visit my website at http://dodd.senate.gov/ and sign up for my regular e-mail alerts. Please don't hesitate to contact me in the future if I may be of assistance to you in any way.
Sincerely,
CHRISTOPHER J. DODD
United States Senator
Dear Mr. Sampson:
Thank you for contacting me with regarding an economic stimulus package to assist middle-class Americans. I appreciate hearing from you on this important issue.
Day after day, the economic news in our nation grows bleaker. The national unemployment rate recently surpassed 7 percent, with more than 126,000 people unemployed in Connecticut alone. Each day, more and more families in our state find themselves struggling to stay in their homes, as the rising tide of foreclosures erodes house prices. These grim facts, coupled with rising health care and energy costs and a sagging stock market, have many middle-class Americans deeply concerned. They see their retirement savings plummet, their ability to access credit drying up, and their ability to send their children to college becoming ever more difficult.
I believe that helping the middle class is the best way to jump-start our economy. As you may be aware, Senators Harry Reid (D-NV) and Robert Byrd (D-WV), introduced a $100 billion economic recovery package geared toward helping hard working Americans in November of 2008. Regrettably, this measure met substantial opposition and was not taken up by the full Senate, though Congress was able to pass legislation providing for an additional 7 weeks of emergency unemployment benefits to all states, and an additional 13 weeks on top of that to states deemed "high unemployment states." Regrettably, Connecticut is one of these states, with an unemployment rate of 7.1 percent. This small step was designed to help the millions of Americans who find themselves facing the worst job market in 17 years.
Fortunately, with the commencement of the 111th Congress and the inauguration of a new President, the focus has shifted from partisan bickering to finding real solutions to the problems facing the American people. On January 28, 2009 the House of Representatives passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, a bill which represents a serious investment in the future of the United States. The House-passed legislation contains $526.5 billion in spending on important initiatives such as infrastructure improvements, renewable energy, and other programs to create jobs. The bill's spending also makes critical down-payments on our nation's future economic health, updating our nation's energy grid, education and health care systems. The legislation also contains important funding for housing and direct aid to states with severely strained budgets, such as Connecticut. Additionally, families who are dependent upon food stamps and unemployment insurance to make ends meet will see an extension of this aid. This bill also has a substantial package of middle-class tax breaks, which will further provide fast economic relief to 95 percent of working families. Altogether, the House legislation will cost a total of $819 billion. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) predicts that the funds from this critical legislation will be pumped into the economy quickly, with 75 percent of the spending injected into the economy within 18 months of passage. So while the costs are high, I believe that the economic benefits of this legislation will be substantial, aiding million of Americans in weathering our current downturn and mitigating an ever worse economic environment.
The Senate expects to take up the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in the coming weeks. The package, which has been primarily worked on by the Senate Appropriations and Finance Committees is similar in size and scope to that passed by the House, though some key differences do exist. As the Senate begins consideration of the measure, please be assured of my strong commitment to not only investing in the middle-class which is the backbone of our economy, but also investing in our future so that economic growth benefits all Americans. I look forward to working with my colleagues to passing this bill, and working with the House to create a final package that achieves these goals in the most transparent, effective manner. Please be assured that I will keep your views in mind throughout the bill's consideration by the Senate.
Thank you again for contacting me. If you would like to stay in touch with me on this or other issues of importance, please visit my website at http://dodd.senate.gov/ and sign up for my regular e-mail alerts. Please don't hesitate to contact me in the future if I may be of assistance to you in any way.
Sincerely,
CHRISTOPHER J. DODD
United States Senator
2 comments:
So I've been trying to get around this whole bailout plan and I'm having difficulties forming an opinion on it because it's so big and the complexity of this issue is so great it's really hard for me to know clearly what would/could happen either way.
Tell me Ken, given what you know about the bill and our current situation, how would you tackle such a situation if it were your responsibility to do so? I'd love to hear your insight.
Bryan - Excellent question. You will have to give me a little bit of time on the response. Thank you for the opportunity to put some thoughts together on it.