Democrats in Congress, knowing that the best way to keep their jobs may be to create some for others, are turning their focus toward another federal stimulus package. But they’re running into doubts about whether more of the same can do any good.
While the Obama administration is addressing jobs creation with a special forum on Thursday — a day before the government releases November jobless numbers — it is trying to stress deficit reduction and is avoiding making any more spending commitments. And Sen. Carl Levin, a powerful Democrat from hard-hit Michigan, said Sunday that he doesn’t see “a lot of evidence” that another stimulus would succeed.
The downbeat assessments come as doubts are increasingly raised about the impact of the first $787 billion stimulus in February. The nation’s unemployment rate hit 10.2 percent in October, and it remains high even in states where the administration says the stimulus has saved or created the most jobs. In California, for instance, the administration says the package saved or created more than 110,000 jobs, but unemployment in the state is at 12.2 percent.
Critics say part of the problem is that the money is being used to keep government workers at the state level from being laid off, a move that saves jobs but does not necessarily spur economic growth. Other jobs, like those created through infrastructure spending, represent short-term employment gains. Such jobs would need constant infusions of public money to be sustained.
“The only jobs we’re creating are government jobs. This nonsense about we’re creating and saving jobs — they’re non-existent,” former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee said on “Fox News Sunday.” “This has been the biggest scam and waste of taxpayer money.”
Read More: Fox News
