Leaders of the House of Representatives have reached a tentative agreement on legislation designed to stimulate the slowing U.S. economy, congressional aides said.
The accord would give tax rebates of at least $300 to individual taxpayers and offer investment incentives to businesses, said two aides familiar with the talks. It would not include new spending for infrastructure or for extending unemployment benefits, the aides said.
Lawmakers are racing to enact a stimulus measure of about $150 billion to try to avoid a looming recession. The Federal Reserve this week made an emergency cut in its benchmark overnight lending rate, lowering it three-quarters of a point to 3.5 percent. President George W. Bush said last week that a stimulus plan is needed because of a ``risk of a downturn.''
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, and House Republican Leader John Boehner of Ohio worked out details of the proposal with Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson during three meetings yesterday. Pelosi and Boehner spoke this morning and reached an agreement in principle, aides said. Leaders in both parties in the Senate will also review it.
Instead of doing that, why not sell lottery tickets for a $150 billion prize? That would be more likely to achieve the outcome than a $300 rebate check.
Seriously, what are these people thinking? See these thoughtful viewsarticle 1 , article 2, and article 3 from Alternet.
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