Stimulus: *additional* welfare cost of $523 billion?
Posted Sun, Feb 8, 2009 at 12:30 pm
From Robert Rector of the Heritage Foundation (link):
The recently passed U.S. House of Representatives stimulus bill contains $816 billion in new spending and tax cuts. Of this sum, $264 billion (32 percent) is new means-tested welfare spending. This represents about $6,700 in new welfare spending for every poor person in the U.S.I'm hardly an expert on this field, and I don't know how to evaluate the details at the link or the ones outlined here.
But this welfare spending is only the tip of the iceberg. The bill sets in motion another $523 billion in new welfare spending that is hidden by budgetary gimmicks. If the bill is enacted, the total 10-year extra welfare cost is likely to be $787 billion.
The claim that Congress is temporarily increasing welfare spending for Keynesian purposes (to spark the economy by boosting consumer spending) is a red herring. The real goal is to get "the camel's nose under the tent" for a massive permanent expansion of the welfare state.
Comments
Mary (not verified)
Sun, 02/08/2009 - 22:31
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HS 17319 maryellenburke2005@comcast.net 2009-02-09T00:31:05-06:0
Where did I see a video of Obama promising to increase the Earned Income Tax Credit...which is welfare on steroids!