WASHINGTON -- The drive for quick action on a huge economic stimulus package has become entangled in the push and pull of Washington politics, and now may not clear Congress until mid-February.
Democrats had hoped to have the approximately $775 billion emergency measure on Barack Obama's desk when he entered the Oval Office on Jan. 20. But it is bogging down in a welter of competing ideas, ideologies and agendas, and may be further slowed by Mr. Obama's desire to win over as many Republicans as possible.
Economists from across the political spectrum warn that if it comes too late or loses focus, the stimulus package could fall short of rescuing the economy from the worst recession since the Great Depression. That could mean more job losses and another hit to consumer confidence.
"Businesses are effectively shut down. And there's no other response except a response from you, from the government," economist Mark Zandi of Moody's Economy.com told a House Democratic forum yesterday. "Confidence has been shattered. ... The only way out is through aggressive and quick government action."
Mr. Obama will make the case for urgent congressional action in a speech today.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., is so concerned about a delay that she threatened, in an interview yesterday, to cancel her chamber's Presidents' Day recess and hold the House in session if legislation had not reached Mr. Obama's desk by the Feb. 16 holiday. "A failure to act quickly can only lead to more job losses and more economic pain for Americans," she said at the forum.
There is broad agreement on the need for an economic stimulus. But for political and procedural reasons, Congress has difficulty operating at high speed. And some members are resisting fast action because of broad dissatisfaction with the $700 billion financial industry rescue fund, which they say was flawed and passed in haste by Congress last fall.
The size and scope of the stimulus, which under Mr. Obama's formulation would include complex tax cuts and targeted government spending, make the legislative process difficult, said House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel, D-N.Y. Further complicating the matter is that Mr. Obama is not yet president, and his Cabinet selections have not been confirmed.
"If I had hearings, who would I call?" asked Mr. Rangel, who echoed the need to act quickly. "All we have is the broad concepts, and we have the responsibility of putting that into legislative form."
Republican lobbyist Mark Isakowitz, who follows tax policy, said drafting such a bill -- with about $300 billion in tax cuts -- is difficult. "Can you really do a bill quickly based on the force of Obama's popularity?" he asked. "It's dawning on people that the laws of Washington have not been suspended."
One of those laws is that members of Congress will always try to put their stamp on any high-profile bill.
Mr. Obama has said he will not allow the stimulus to contain any congressional pet spending projects, the controversial items known as earmarks.
Beyond the complexities of drafting the legislation, Democrats and Republicans are at odds over the focus of the stimulus. Democrats are emphasizing government spending -- particularly on roads, bridges and other infrastructure -- to boost the economy and create jobs. Republicans say too much spending is wasteful -- particularly after the Congressional Budget Office yesterday projected a $1.2 trillion federal budget deficit for the current fiscal year. They are pushing for the bulk of the stimulus to come through tax cuts.
First Published: January 8, 2009, 3:30 p.m.
