GOP Report Points to Stimulus Money Gone Awry

[sabra]

Source: CNBC

Two Republican senators have conducted an exhaustive survey of the Obama administration’s $787 billion economic stimulus spending and found that some of the spending didn’t create jobs — it actually led to job losses.

...

All in all, Senators Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.) scrutinized 100 projects, finding that some eliminated jobs, and others were simply questionable expenditures of money.

The report, obtained in advance by CNBC, spotlights everything from federal stimulus money that went to study the effects of cocaine on monkeys to dollars that went to construction projects that blocked access to local businesses — which laid off employees as a result.

The findings come despite a hearty endorsement of the federal stimulus just a few days ago in another report, this one by the economists Alan Blinder and Mark Zandi. The duo found that the effects of the federal stimulus were “very substantial,” raising 2010 real GDP by about 3.4 percent, holding unemployment about 1.5 percentage points lower and boosting US payrolls by almost 2.7 million jobs.

...

Todd McKittrick, owner of Archery Bistro in Washington State’s Normandy Park, said he’s down to about half the staff he began with as the result of a stimulus funded road construction project he said is blocking access to his property.

“We used to have a good lunch business, but with the construction going on during the day, it actually killed our lunch business,” McKittrick told CNBC. “We’ve also shut down two more days to help stop the bleeding of the cost of the construction.”

Read more: http://www.cnbc.com/id/38534982

[jody]

1. Stimulus money went to pay for fish food and to study hummingbirds. IMO that makes more sense than

giving it to corporations who use it to build factories in other countries.

[socialist_n_TN]

2. You know if you look at ANY 3/4 TRILLION dollar budget

and/or program, guess what? You're going to FIND some waste. The question should ALWAYS be, how much waste and is it too much waste? Not whether there IS waste or not.

And as the other poster said, I'd rather see the money going to scientific projects than to big businesses who use it to improve their bottom lines.

[RBInMaine]

3. These are the same kind of of SCUM who voted against it but take credit for it. FUCK THEM.

[madmom]

4. I don't but the shutting down because of road construction bull. We had

the same thing here and a restaurant went out and used the same excuse, problem was no one around him had that problem. His food just sucked! When they DO have entrances blocked it's never for a very long period of time,couple days max, in my experience.

[zogofzorkon]

5. If only construction workers ate lunch

or had coffee in the morning or smoked or read the newspaper they might have brought there business to Archery Bistro. Of course it might mean going deli/ lunch counter for the duration of the work.

[Kweli4Real]

6. I'll have to wait for the full report, but ...

Saying that the stimulus spending cost jobs, then citing to Archery Bistro's having to cut staff because a stimulus funded road construction project blocked access seems just a little bit convoluted. Can we also say that college educations cause job loss and cite to the 1000s of people that resign from jobs to go to/return to school? Or, how about we stop doing research for life-saving medical procedures and medications because it costs jobs in the funeral industry?

[Tempest]

7. Why hasn't Colburn and McCain looked into Pentagon wasteful spending?

The waste they found from the stimulus package is peanuts compared to the waste in the military.

[alp227]

8. DU thread points at Iraq War funds gone awry

www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x4480367

[Evasporque]

9. YARGLE BARGLE!! ROAD contructions is a waste!!!

BLARRRRGGGHHHH

Milwaukee has been using bloated stimulus funds to rebuild crumbling roads and sewer infrastructure...sure they have a crack, pot hole or two and maybe big sections can actually damage cars if the drivers are not careful. We live in nation where people need to take responsibility for driving around potholes, pressure ridges, broken pavement and sunken manhole covers and sinkholes...

BARGLE!!