The article "Trade-Offs in the Stimulus Package" is designed to illustrate both sides of the political and economic arguments that are being debated on the Houses' stimulus package. The author Madison Powers, who has a background in philosophy and law and who has a history of researching just this sort of topic, does an excellent job weighing the opposed sides of the two most debated aspects of the bill. In looking at if the dollars that are being spent will return at a higher rate, hence stimulating the economy, Mr Madison also discusses if it is wise to invest in just a few areas that are known to produce the return that is wanted or if it might be better to spread out the money in some new and unexpected ways. Also discussed is whether the bill has enough big infrastructure components or if that money is going to be invested in a more nontraditional way. The article which appears in the CQ, which is a magazine know for its through and well documented following of politics in Washington, is well written, very fair and balanced, and well thought out.
Nobody knows exactly what is going to happen, or even if this stimulus package will help, but most of us hope that it does. The status quo has not been working, but that does not necessarily mean that we need to go back to the New Deal days. The New Deal worked during it's time because that is what our country needed at the time, Congress needs to look at what we need in our time and decide how to best accomplish that. Just because something worked in a specific situation before does not mean it is the answer to all the problems. And the debate in Congress should continue until such a time as they feel they have the best package for the country as a whole, not their specific political parties.
