Sunday, January 11, 2009

NYTIMES lining up against Obama stimulus plan

The editorial page of The New York Times today did not come out against the Obama economic stimulus plan, but it came as close as possible in signaling its significant dismay with some of the package's major components.

The Obama team should consider the editorial a warning shot over its bow. The next one -- without change of the plan -- is going to lead the Left in revolt.

The editorial expressed dismay with Obama providing tax cuts to households making up to $200,000, providing tax breaks to businesses that already profited from Bush administration policy and the swelling of the nation's deficit without get the best bang for the buck.

The Times explained its considerable hesitation this way:

The Obama team clearly views the tax giveaways as good politics, helping to win support for the overall package. But the severity of the nation’s fiscal and economic situation should make it think twice.

The day before Mr. Obama’s speech, the Congressional Budget Office projected a 2009 deficit of $1.2 trillion, nearly a threefold increase from 2008. The federal budget — already deep in deficit after years of tax cutting while waging two wars — is being pushed further into the red by a recession that is now more than a year old and has no end in sight.

Concern over swelling deficits should not stop Congress from taking steps to revive the economy. But rising deficits — coupled with long-term budget problems driven mostly by the rising cost of health care — make it imperative to get the most from every dollar that is spent on stimulus. That means spending less money for tax cuts for business and high-income Americans, and more for government programs like, say, unemployment relief and aid to states.


Opposition of The Times carries considerable clout. Of course, Obama did not need the paper's support during the Democratic primaries. It endorsed favorite daughter Hillary Rodham Clinon.

But the stakes are much higher now. The Obama plan does not have support on the Right. Dissolution of support on the Left because of The Times will leave the new president without enough needed support in the middle.

And his presidency will be compromised before it can really even begin.

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