Obama: Give economy $50 billion boost

Source: CNN Money

With a big jump in the unemployment rate and record oil prices, Barack Obama says he wants to extend benefits for those out of work and send out more rebate checks.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- On the first day of what is to be a two-week economic tour around the country, Barack Obama said Monday he thinks lawmakers need to inject another $50 billion immediately into the sluggish U.S. economy.

The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee cited the largest monthly increase in the unemployment rate in over 20 years, and record highs in oil prices, food prices and foreclosures.

"Such relief can't wait until the next president takes office. ... That's why I've called for another round of fiscal stimulus, an immediate $50 billion to help those who've been hit hardest by this economic downturn," Obama told a crowd in Raleigh, NC.

He said specifically that he supports expanding and extending unemployment benefits, as well as a second round of tax rebate checks.

Read more: http://money.cnn.com/2008/06/09/news/economy/obama_economy_changetour/index.htm?postversion=2008060914

it needs to be more substantial than yet another giveaway of borrowed money. Expanding unemployment, hell yeah. Another round of rebates? I don't think I'd like that very much.

If it only goes to the poor/unemployed it will likely get shot right back into the economy... and we should help these folks out anyways.

Where is the $50,000,000,000 coming from? Won't we have to pay it back at some point??

this smells like a bad idea

The biggest piggy bank, FULL of fat piggies.

they won't even miss it. They don't know where the money's going anyway..might as well lose some our way.

Although in this case, any move is a good move. What he could do is freeze, by executive order, any and all job outsourcing and H1 visas for a period of one year, with option to renew at the end of the year. Add in penalties for corporations who took tax cuts and credits for job creation and are now destroying jobs. Take away the tax credit for offshoring. Then, send Congress legislation to close the Gramm loophole in commodities trading, and instruct the DoJ, FTC, SEC and FBI to form a task force to start investigations in market manipulation in the commodities sector. Follow that by rescinding the tax cuts for the richest one percent and other loopholes.

He could then move onto the Truth & Reconciliation Commission, a real one with subpoena powers and powers of bringing indictments, and give them carte blanche. The country, both here and in the world, desperately needs that.

Liar.

Hill, hill, hill. :silly:

Feel free to share my ideas with any congressional staffers you might run across during your daily perambulations. They can take the credit, too.

are like selling your soul to the devil right now. People need lasting help, not one time checks.

This is too easy to shoot down. It's a wussy action. Instead of telling people the truth, he wants to borrow money to buy votes? I hope not.

the people really aren't as dumb as the politicians would like to believe they are. We want JOBS, not band-aids.

while you're at it. . . .

Protect our jobs. You see, if I want to work in Europe, as an American, I can obtain a work permit to go work there, but here's the catch:

1. The hiring company has to prove that the job cannot be filled by a European
2. They cannot pay me more than they would pay a European in the same job
3. It would probably be easier to pull my own leg off and enter a one legged baton twirling competition than to successfully obtain a European work permit, even if 1 and 2 above were in order.

Mr. Barack, tear down these cubicle and factory walls! I mean, the ones in India, in Mexico, Canada, The near, far and south east.

It is time to bring our jobs home. If you are unwilling to do that, here's another idea:

Eliminate the maximum wage in Mexico. Allow Americans to own sovereign non-military land in Europe, Canada, Indonesia and South America. Demand competitive minimum wages in every country we steal labor from at the cost of human rights. Tell them when they can compete on jobs we'll allow our companies to operate there or sell goods manufactured there. Don't make it attractive to companies to shit-can their American labor just because you can get id down cheaper elsewhere. Don't make America the golden goose for fleeing, impoverished people who quite often just end up recreating their culture of origin social and economic conditions here.

Seriously, the cure for our economy is reduced unemployment numbers, not increased unemployment compensation.

As you said, if we want to go to Europe (or India) and work, we're screwed, while at the same time we seem to be quite eager to import workers from offshore.

Heck, Sen. Boxer wants to hand out green cards to every foreign national with a job offer that gets a masters degree: http://boxer.senate.gov/news/releases/record.cfm?id=298804

our kids have to pay off outrageous student loans even at state university now. Not only are our grads coming out to find no jobs or flipping burgers anwyay just to feed themselves, they're being harvested for (in many cases) predatory interest rates, penalties, fees and other punitives that loan portfolio buyers hedge their margins on. If all your education earns you is a couch at your parents house and a job flipping burgers, why bother with the education. (sorry burger flippers! point being . . . )

Even that would be "fair" if they weren't competing against students who have no educational debt and can therefore take lower income and still live better, or at least be the more fiscally attractive candidate to an employer.

Why doesn't Senator Boxer hand out an interest rate abatement to every national student who gets a masters degree! When will we learn to take care of our own first?

We're already in the process of wasting millions to print the current $150 billion round of checks. We don't need another.

How about letting people borrow money at that nice 2.0% that the Fed is offering the banks? The banks are supposed to lend that money to us in a cheap manner, but instead mortgages are still at 6% and credit cards still at least another 10% above that.

to really get America back to work? I'll say it again; A National high speed mag-lev system with light rail connectors plus massive solar farms would help wean us off foreign oil, slow climate change and smog related illnesses, and put thousands of Americans back to work while helping others to become far more mobile. We could once again be the envy of the world if we spent our money on innovation instead of war...

:spray:

:wtf:

The last stimulus idea was B.S., and won't do any long-term good all, only putting us in more debt. When is SOMEONE going to figure that we need to actually stimulate American PRODUCTION and NEW JOBS, not consumption. Consumption is a by-product of people actually making a living. Otherwise, you're just living off one giant credit card and slowly dragging yourself down.

Another band-aid won't do a thing, and frankly, I'm really ashamed to see something like this floated by the candidate I've been supporting since Edwards dropped out of the race. I've supported Obama because he has been smart enough to avoid pandering such as the absolutely idiotic gas tax holiday idea. But what the hell is this?

and need a band-aid. I think expanding and extending the unemployment insurance might be a good thing.

Why not just limit it to that?

It is appreciated.

Doing what he can, now. Then getting to real resolve when he takes office. Obama is limited in what he can do now, so he is asking for the most possible and reasonbale thing that can be done quickly.

The best thing that could be done, cut off the Trillion dollar warmongering budget and get the fuck out of Iraq. No buying that fucking mess anymore would do wonders for everyone!!!

I seem to remember the democrats in congress were not going to extend unemployment insurance? stupid fucking move for the democrats, extending unemployment benefits should be a no-brainier.

We can all discuss the merits of whether it's a good idea, how effective it will be, etc. But kudos to Sen. Obama on this one: in suggesting an extra stimulas package, he appears to be concerned about our economy. More importantly, a "tax stimulus" (i.e. blatant pandering for votes) has been a traditional item from the Republican playbook. By being the first to suggest it, he's taken an arrow away from the Republican quiver. Brilliant!

Wages increases for all employees .....