Paul Krugman points out that the recession is going to keep devouring jobs for at least another year and maybe longer, even taking into account the effects of a stimulus bill. Republicans would love nothing more than to enter the next election cycle with an economy still in the doldrums, which might be the excuse Obama and his advisers need to go for broke. They should assemble a bill that showers money on infrastructure, R&D, education, and health care with enough left over to cut payroll taxes for the vast majority of working people. To put it in geek terms, Obama is about to play a very long game of Civilization. And the best way to win at a game of Civ is to research the hell out of that technology tree and build lots of cool stuff that will keep your citizens happy and productive. Well, that and ensuring a stray cavalry unit doesn’t wander into foreign territory and piss off the Aztecs.
I’m not thrilled about running up the deficit to the stratosphere, but austerity measures are the last thing we need right now. Obama has one chance, maybe two, to push for the kind of investment needed to keep the economy from tailspinning. If he misses those opportunities, there’s no “reload” button to click.
How interesting times of crisis can be!
My opinion is that the best chances for a change are in the field of medicine. The fact that Bush didn’t want to invest in stem cell research for instance, was a crime against all the people in the world.