Obama, the stimulus, and jobs
The president promises to spend faster to fight unemployment. Would a second stimulus bill help more?
What happened
President Obama is promising to create more than 600,000 new jobs this summer by accelerating some of the $787 billion economic stimulus spending Congress approved earlier in February. But even that employment boost won't offset the more than 1.6 million jobs lost since then. The losses have pushed unemployment to 9.4 percent, the highest since 1983. (Los Angeles Times)
What the commentators said
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Stimulus spending works, said Katrina vanden Heuvel in The Nation. We're just not spending with enough vigor. "In the absence of consumer spending and business investment, the government must step in and use these deficits in order to avert a depression." So we need to spend the package already approved and add a second round of stimulus money before it's too late.
Not so fast, said Derek Thompson in The Atlantic. The economy is still terrible, but it's getting better. Obama should hold off against the growing cry for a second stimulus bill, at least until there's proof that the first stimulus package is doing some good.
The original stimulus certainly hasn't delivered so far, said Brett Blackledge in Townhall. True, most of the money hasn't been spent yet. But Obama always said the effects would only kick in over time, and the 9.4 percent unemployment rate is considerably worse than the 8 percent unemployment the White House predicted. No wonder Republicans are "slamming" the stimulus "as a big government program that ultimately will do little for recovery."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
Magazine interactive crossword - May 3, 2024
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - May 3, 2024
By The Week US Published
-
Magazine solutions - May 3, 2024
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - May 3, 2024
By The Week US Published
-
Magazine printables - May 3, 2024
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - May 3, 2024
By The Week US Published
-
Arizona court reinstates 1864 abortion ban
Speed Read The law makes all abortions illegal in the state except to save the mother's life
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump, billions richer, is selling Bibles
Speed Read The former president is hawking a $60 "God Bless the USA Bible"
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The debate about Biden's age and mental fitness
In Depth Some critics argue Biden is too old to run again. Does the argument have merit?
By Grayson Quay Published
-
How would a second Trump presidency affect Britain?
Today's Big Question Re-election of Republican frontrunner could threaten UK security, warns former head of secret service
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'Rwanda plan is less a deterrent and more a bluff'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By The Week UK Published
-
Henry Kissinger dies aged 100: a complicated legacy?
Talking Point Top US diplomat and Nobel Peace Prize winner remembered as both foreign policy genius and war criminal
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Last updated
-
Trump’s rhetoric: a shift to 'straight-up Nazi talk'
Why everyone's talking about Would-be president's sinister language is backed by an incendiary policy agenda, say commentators
By The Week UK Published
-
More covfefe: is the world ready for a second Donald Trump presidency?
Today's Big Question Republican's re-election would be a 'nightmare' scenario for Europe, Ukraine and the West
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published