So, about all that bailout money....

[VinnieKulick]

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The recovery is picking up steam as employers boost payrolls, but economists think the government's stimulus package and jobs bill had little to do with the rebound, according to a survey released Monday.

In latest quarterly survey by the National Association for Business Economics, the index that measures employment showed job growth for the first time in two years -- but a majority of respondents felt the fiscal stimulus had no impact.

NABE conducted the study by polling 68 of its members who work in economic roles at private-sector firms. About 73% of those surveyed said employment at their company is neither higher nor lower as a result of the $787 billion Recovery Act, which the White House's Council of Economic Advisers says is on track to create or save 3.5 million jobs by the end of the year.

That sentiment is shared for the recently passed $17.7 billion jobs bill that calls for tax breaks for businesses that hire and additional infrastructure spending. More than two-thirds of those polled believe the measure won't affect payrolls, while 30% expect it to boost hiring "moderately."


But the economists see conditions improving. More than half of respondents -- 57% -- say industrial demand is rising, while just 6% see it declining. A growing number also said their firms are increasing spending and profit margins are widening.

Nearly a quarter of those surveyed forecast that gross domestic product, the broadest measure of economic activity, will grow more than 3% in 2010, and 70% of NABE's respondents expect it to grow more than 2%.

Still, the survey suggested that tight lending conditions remain a concern. Almost half of those polled said the credit crunch hurts their business.

[Ugmo]

Goddamn, you desperately want something to be miserable about, huh? Economy's improving and you throw out not-so-veiled criticism of Obama anyway. For what it's worth you mean stimulus money and not bailout money. Who knows... when the bill was passed it was said it wouldn't take full effect until 2010 anyway:

http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/2 ... ects_N.htm


Hey, you'll be happy to hear that the TARP bailouts cost less than expected though:

http://money.cnn.com/2010/04/23/news/ec ... /index.htm

Or will you?

[MasterOfMeatPuppets]

Vinnie won't be happy until the Republicans lead this country into bankruptcy and foreclosure as a wholly owned subsidiary of the PRC. Nothing to do with Obama or Democrats will be good news to him.

Obama could discover the cure to AIDS and cancer and his post would read "Obama cures AIDS and cancer too late to save millions already dead".

[VinnieKulick]

I'll be happy when WHOEVER is in office stops spending money like it grows on trees.

[JakeYonkel]

Obama could discover the cure to AIDS and cancer and his post would read "Obama cures AIDS and cancer too late to save millions already dead".

Funny, I remember that exact same quote being said by conservatives about Bush.

Everybody's a partisan asshole.

[MasterOfMeatPuppets]

I'll be happy when WHOEVER is in office stops spending money like it grows on trees.

...and it only took you eight years to remember what a fiscal conservative is.

[Nevermind]

I'll be happy when WHOEVER is in office stops spending money like it grows on trees.

...and it only took you eight years to remember what a fiscal conservative is.

A liberal talking about fiscal conservatism

[MasterOfMeatPuppets]

I'll be happy when WHOEVER is in office stops spending money like it grows on trees.

...and it only took you eight years to remember what a fiscal conservative is.

A liberal talking about fiscal conservatism

Were I still a Republican, it would be truly ironic.

[lerxstcat]

I'll be happy when WHOEVER is in office stops spending money like it grows on trees.

It DOES grow on trees! Trees make paper, on which we print money!

Glad I could clear that up for you!

[VinnieKulick]

I'll be happy when WHOEVER is in office stops spending money like it grows on trees.

...and it only took you eight years to remember what a fiscal conservative is.

Yeah, because there was no other issue in 2000 or 2004 to consider OTHER than budgets.

[Ugmo]

It's funny, Bush inherited a budget surplus and a thriving economy and still managed to fuck up the budget, yet you vote for him again anyway. Obama inherits an economy in tatters, gaping holes in tax revenues due to the Bush tax cuts and the high unemployment, and you crucify him for not balancing the budget. That's quite a double standard you've got going there!

[MasterOfMeatPuppets]

I'll be happy when WHOEVER is in office stops spending money like it grows on trees.

...and it only took you eight years to remember what a fiscal conservative is.

Yeah, because there was no other issue in 2000 or 2004 to consider OTHER than budgets.

Because budgets and other financial matters were a non-issue for you and your Republican brethren, we're in this mess. Thanks for voting, Vinnie.

[VinnieKulick]

It's funny, Bush inherited a budget surplus and a thriving economy and still managed to fuck up the budget, yet you vote for him again anyway. Obama inherits an economy in tatters, gaping holes in tax revenues due to the Bush tax cuts and the high unemployment, and you crucify him for not balancing the budget. That's quite a double standard you've got going there!

You still trying to ignore that Obama spent more in his first hundred days than Bush did in 8 years?

[MasterOfMeatPuppets]

It's funny, Bush inherited a budget surplus and a thriving economy and still managed to fuck up the budget, yet you vote for him again anyway. Obama inherits an economy in tatters, gaping holes in tax revenues due to the Bush tax cuts and the high unemployment, and you crucify him for not balancing the budget. That's quite a double standard you've got going there!

You still trying to ignore that Obama spent more in his first hundred days than Bush did in 8 years?

On Jan. 20, 2001, the national debt was $5,727,776,738,304.64. On Jan. 20, 2009, the national debt was $10,626,877,048,913.08. That meant he spent at least $4,899,100,310,608.44 in 8 years. Are you telling us Obama spent 4.9 trillion in his first 100 days? Vinnie, do you ever think about the statistics you spout out?

[Ugmo]

You still trying to ignore that Obama spent more in his first hundred days than Bush did in 8 years?

As MeatPuppets said, that doesn't seem accurate. Without knowing what figure you're specifically referring to, Obama's spending could be accounted for through:

1) the bank bailouts initiated under Bush, which were necessary to prevent total economic collapse - and which turned out to be much less expensive than originally estimated

2) the stimulus packages, which most economists argued in favor of (and some even said weren't big enough)

3) more than 1 trillion worth of deficits he inherited from Bush (as 2009 was still Bush's budget)

There isn't really that much to specifically criticize, except for the defense budget, which is ludicrously excessive.

[Tommy2Tone84]

I'll be happy when WHOEVER is in office stops spending money like it grows on trees.

...and it only took you eight years to remember what a fiscal conservative is.

Yeah, because there was no other issue in 2000 or 2004 to consider OTHER than budgets.

Vinnie, seriously? The budget is and should always be an issue.

You've got a serious hypocrisy problem

[CliffByford]

Can anyone name another President who introduced a tax cut during a war other than George W Bush?

Or, indeed, any other world leader doing the same? I'd be interested to know, because this seems like a counter-intuitive thing to do.

[TravisBickelsMohawk]

I'll be happy when WHOEVER is in office stops spending money like it grows on trees.

It DOES grow on trees! Trees make paper, on which we print money!

Glad I could clear that up for you!

Money is printed on cotton, which does not grow on trees, doofus.

[MasterOfMeatPuppets]

I'll be happy when WHOEVER is in office stops spending money like it grows on trees.

It DOES grow on trees! Trees make paper, on which we print money!

Glad I could clear that up for you!

Money is printed on cotton, which does not grow on trees, doofus.

Trees and cotton are both plants.