Spring Break
Lawmakers bargain into overtime on stimulus bill
David Espo and Julie Hirschfeld Davis The Associated Press
Issue date: 2/13/09 Section: News
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Lingering controversy over school-modernization money, a scaled-back tax break for businesses and other issues forced a delay in final votes on the legislation. But Democratic leaders still hoped for final passage by the weekend.
Republicans, lined up to vote against the bill, piled on the scorn. "This is not the smart approach," said Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader. "The taxpayers of today and tomorrow will be left to clean up the mess."
President Barack Obama delivered what has become a daily call for congressional action, this time from the industrial heartland. With approval of the bill, he said in Peoria, Ill., companies "may be able to start growing again. Rather than cutting jobs, they may be able to create them again."
He spoke at Caterpillar Inc., the heavy machinery giant that has announced 22,000 layoffs but says it will rescind some of them once the stimulus passes.
At the Capitol and in an atmosphere of uncertainty, provisions were coming to light that had not been included in the original bills that passed the House or Senate - or that differed markedly from earlier versions, or that appeared to brush up against claims of the bill's supporters that no earmarks were included.
One last-minute addition was a $3.2 billion tax break for General Motors Corp. that would allow the ailing auto giant to use current losses to claim refunds for taxes paid when times were good. GM got a $13.4 billion federal bailout late last year - and is expected to receive more in 2009 - and argued that without the provision, its government-financed turnaround plan could force the company to pay higher taxes.
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