House passes 819 Billion - 0 republican support

[Dredly]

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009...stimulus-plan/

The House of Representatives approved an $819 billion economic stimulus package Wednesday that President Obama has said is necessary to revive the crumbling U.S. economy.

The final vote was 244-188, mostly along party lines as expected. All Republicans who were present voted against the bill. They were joined in their opposition by 11 Democrats.

The largely partisan vote was a slap in the face of Obama who said earlier Wednesday that Republican support would back up his argument that a new style of bipartisan politics is needed in Washington.

Even so, passage of the House bill was a victory for Obama, who visited Capitol Hill Tuesday to push for his plan. But the heaviest lift will come in the Senate, which plans to significantly alter the package and raise the price tag.

The House legislation includes an estimated $544 billion in federal spending and $275 billion in tax cuts for individuals and businesses. It includes money for highway construction and mass transit.

But at least two Maryland representatives were unconvinced that the legislation was the right move for the economic crisis.

Freshman Rep. Frank Kratovil, D-MD, called it "wasteful spending" while Rep. Roscoe Bartlett, R-MD, was applauded by fellow Republicans for standing up to Obama during a meeting.

"Mr. President, I think our obsessive borrowing has fully mortgaged my kids and my grandkids," Bartlett told Obama, according to statement from Bartlett's office. "Now we're working on mortgaging my two great-grandkids.

"Mr. President, I think it's more than a little bit selfish to try to solve our economic problems which we created by burdening future generations yet to be born," he added.

But ahead of the vote, Democratic congressional leaders brushed aside any concerns Republicans had, stressing their comfortable majority in the House.

"If there is somebody who is disgruntled, so be it. But we will have an overwhelming vote," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a talk with reporters. She and more than a half-dozen other Democrats touted the bill and chided Republicans for pushing what they called the kind of failed policies that led to the economic crisis.

"The Republicans are talking about process. I think when you lose the argument on substance, on policy, what do you do? You talk about process and you talk about personality," she said.

Meanwhile, House Republican leaders were standing firm in their opposition to the stimulus plan. Just ahead of the House vote, they insisted that their own plan, focusing on tax relief, would create twice as many new jobs -- 6.2 million -- as the plan Obama is pushing, while costing about half as much.

But the House defeated their plan Wednesday with a vote of 286-170.

The House measure had been estimated to cost $825 billion, but the Congressional Budget Office updated the bill's price tag to $816 billion after accountants recalculated the cost. That total rose by $3 billion when the House approved on a voice vote a Democratic amendment for mass transit.

Earlier Wednesday, Obama tried to assure skeptics who say the package is too costly and contains too many measures that will not stimulate job growth.

He called for "bold and swift" action and said that the stimulus package before Congress will make critical investments in the private sector as well as the national infrastructure.

"We will invest in what works," Obama said, pledging to release information about how the money is spent.

Asked whether he was confident of getting Republican support, he replied only: "I'm confident we're going to get it passed."

His program is expansive -- and expensive. Republican support remained in doubt in the hours leading up to the vote.

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell also expressed skepticism about the bill pushed by House Democrats.

Senate committees were working on a separate version of the measure that enjoyed only slightly more support from Republicans. Congressional leaders have promised Obama they would send him the measure, which could be the single largest bill ever to go through Congress, by mid-February.

The president's first days in office have been dominated by his efforts to drum up bipartisan support for the sweeping plan to help pull the country out of the year-old recession that he inherited from President Bush. The increasingly troublesome economy -- and the federal government's response to it -- is the first major test of Obama's presidency. How he handles the volatile situation, and the effect of his stimulus package on the economy, could set the tone for his first year in office, if not his entire term.

the first bill passed with 0 bipartisan support in quite a while. Not a single republican voted yes

[IV_Warrior]

Yes, thank you to the Republicans in the House. However, it's worth little if this pork/payback bill doesn't get stopped in the Senate.

[Ozone]

Someone from the left will be by in a few minutes to save us, and give us a brainwashing spin to this frivolous spending.

[bighornjd]

Just a small taste of many, many, liberal and stupid bills that will be passed in this wonderful Democrat controlled Congress and Presidency. Or in the case of a bill that may actually make sense - a perfect example of how easily it will be shot down. I'm not sure my ass is ready for the bumpy road ahead for the next 4 years.

[dodgefolks]

I feel sick to my stomach. What a disgrace.

[archangel689]

Is it possible we will see fillibusters if this continues happening?

[stevieb92]

Someone from the left will be by in a few minutes to save us, and give us a brainwashing spin to this frivolous spending.

Been almost an hour....


Tick tock, tick tock....

[Captain Tuttle]

Been almost an hour....


Tick tock, tick tock....

Nah...just add the Obama lovers to your Ignore List in the "User CP".

You can't fix stupid...but you don't have to read their drivel when scanning through threads.

[H.E. Pennypacker]

Does anyone think the vote accurately represents how the American people feel? I hope not...because if the idiot Democrats keep doing stuff like this, Republicans will gain more seats in 2010.

[Paradigm]

...just like with Clinton at the beginning of his term.


Anyone who clings to the Constitution should be absolutely disgusted by this spending bill. All it does it expand government by taking from those who work and support those who do not.