Obama Last Guy in American that Thinks Stimulus Worked

Obama thinks the stimulus worked. He even said that "the vast majority of economists are convinced, that the steps we took in the Recovery Act saved millions of people their jobs."

Oh yeah? If it was so wonderful why did Summers, Romer, Orszag, Bernstein and Goolsbee - stimulus advocates all - quit rather than bask in the success of their policy creation? Also, what of the five prominent economists noted here that have already publicly stated that the stimulus was a waste of money?

In fact very few economists believe that the stimulus worked. Most acknowledge that the stimulus was largely transfer payments to states who used the money to temporarily plug the holes in what are widely seen as unsustainably large deficit budgets. So yes, the stimulus kept the government employee gravy train motoring down the tracks awhile longer, but nobody equates this with fostering the long term health of the economy.

In my view, even if the stimulus could have possibly worked (which I believe it couldn't have), it was neutered by the damaging rhetoric and policy agenda of this President and the Pelosicrats as I have noted here. What the stimulus offered with one hand, the poisonous anti-business stance of Washington DC caused to be withdrawn by the other hand. For all their purported expertise in Keynesian economics, they were ignorant of what Keynes dubbed the "animal spirits" of the economy, which they have succeeded in thoroughly and relentlessly crushing. Obama's economics is all wet here. Perhaps because there's nobody left on the economic roster at the White House.