The latest report from White House economists concludes that the $821 billion economic stimulus package created or saved between 2.4 million and 3.6 million jobs, enough to "cushion the fall" of the cratering economy after the 2008 crash. But if that's the case, critics say, the Obama administration could have just cut checks for $100,000 to every person put to work by the stimulus, and still saved hundreds of billions of dollars. And, says Jeffrey H. Anderson at The Weekly Standard, six months ago, the same economists estimated that the number of jobs saved might have been even higher, which suggests the massive debt we piled up with the stimulus is now costing us jobs. Could the stimulus really be increasing unemployment?
The stimulus saved jobs, period: The numbers don't lie, says Erica Rodriquez at the Orlando Sentinel. Money from the 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act saved thousands of teaching jobs in Florida alone. "It also helped support struggling schools and provided a financial cushion during a statewide economic downturn and resulting budget crisis." If you don't believe the stimulus did any good, wait to see what happens now that the money is drying up.
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