Posted on 02/07/2008 6:59:58 PM PST by Libloather
$168 Billion Stimulus Plan Clears Congress
NYTimes.com
Friday February 8, 12:37 am ET
By DAVID M. HERSZENHORN and DAVID STOUT
WASHINGTON — Congress overwhelmingly approved a $168 billion economic stimulus program on Thursday, sending it to President Bush for his signature so that millions of Americans can look forward to government checks in the mail.
The House gave its final approval to the package on Thursday night by a vote of 380 to 34.
The House was able to act because a stalemate in the Senate was broken a few hours earlier after Democrats agreed to add only payments for senior citizens and disabled veterans to a plan approved earlier by the House with the backing of President Bush. The Democrats’ retreat on adding other measures to the bill cleared the way for an 81-to-16 Senate vote in favor of it.
**SNIP**
But Republican senators held firm, frustrating the Democrats’ efforts to get the 60 votes they needed to end debate. But in settling for a $168 billion package, the Senate Democratic majority leader, Harry Reid of Nevada, refused to admit defeat.
“We were able to make the House bill better,” he said, pledging to continue to try to corral enough votes to provide more economic stimulus in the months ahead.
**SNIP**
As the terms of the program changed, so did the numbers. At first, the price tag was put at $171 billion over two years; a couple hours later, it was recalculated at $168 billion.
The program calls for rebates ranging from $300 to $1,200 for most taxpayers, payments of $300 to people who paid no income taxes but earned $3,000 or more from Social Security or veterans’ disability benefits, and various tax incentives for businesses.
(Excerpt) Read more at biz.yahoo.com ...
I don’t see why not. The 20 guys in the house down the street are going to get theirs in pesos.
So what’s the cap on income. I didn’t see that in the article. Is it still the same as last week....$75000 if single, $150000 if married?
I think the tax cuts are still good for 2008 income. In December, I'll reconfigure my 401k contributions to my max allowable to reduce my AGI when the higher rates kick in. If that isn't enough, I may have to ask my company to let me participate in the "income deferral" program. My pay gets booked, but not paid until some time in the future. The risk is that the company might fail before the money gets paid out AND that money isn't earning any interest as it sits as a booked entry.
Don’t forget the interest!
You maybe a bit high on that $1200. Oh, and don't forget to report your new-found income on your next tax filing.
I believe.
LLS
What are you talking about? The Democrats were trying to add stuff to the bill, but the Republicans blocked most of it. There was no 800 to 300 dollar rebate cut. The taxpayer rebate is still $600, $1,200 per couple, $300 per kid.
He's not high; he's low. A couple with 2 kids will get an $1800 check, assuming your taxes are at least that much.
Folks, this wreaks of socialism. I pay more taxes, and this is what the result is?
This is just a harbringer of more to come of an OSama/Her thighness/Juan McLame administration.
Illegals May Still Get Rebate Checks Under Stimulus Plan: 02-08-08
Congressman Tom Tancredo said:
“The fact that we know that Social Security numbers are compromised, the fact that thousands of people, maybe millions of people, we don’t know for sure how many people, filed an income tax form with a fake Social Security number — we also know that there’s absolutely no communication between the IRS and Social Security Administration.”
Tancredo made that statement when we found out that the House-passed version of the Bush stimulus plan was going to pay a windfall of up to $28 billion to illegal aliens!
Then GOP Senator John Ensign said he could fix that glitch. He proposed that only people possessing Social Security numbers be eligible for rebates.
That solution looks good at first glance. In fact, we applaud Senator Ensign’s good faith effort. Unfortunately, however, the so-called “Ensign Fix” will not fully correct the problem. It’s like plugging a leaky faucet with chewing gum.
As all 100 senators surely know, it’s almost as easy to buy a Social Security number in some places as it is to buy a Big Mac. According to some government estimates, the buying and selling of fake Social Security numbers is now a 50-billion-dollar-a-year business.
With as many as 20 million illegal aliens in the United States, we’re talking about megabucks snatched out of the wallets of hard-working taxpaying American citizens.
If only 2 million — that’s 10% of that potential number of illegal aliens in the United States — held fraudulent Social Security numbers, taxpayers would be bilked out of at least $1.6 BILLION in rebates!
But that’s simply assuming each of these folks were single. If they’re married and have children (or if they simply claim to be married with children), that’s BILLIONS MORE!
Oh, yes. And you can add that to the estimated $338.3 billion American taxpayers like you and me already shell out each year on food stamps, Medicaid, free education, incarceration of alien criminals, and other government programs.
And when Uncle Sam cuts these illegal aliens their checks, two things will inevitably happen:
(1) They will send most of this money back home and enrich the economies of other countries;
(2) It will encourage more illegal border crossings. With American taxpayers footing the bill — handing out free welfare and now, cold hard cash — why wouldn’t more people cross our border illegally?
Use the link below to send your urgent and personalized Blast Fax messages to President Bush and the GOP leadership in Congress.
Tell them that while you support Senator Ensign and his good-faith effort to fix the rebate checks for illegal aliens’ loophole, the “fix” falls short of correcting the problem. Demand they act to truly prevent illegal aliens from receiving rebate checks. In addition, tell them to reject the other giveaways that liberal Senators are trying to tack on to the stimulus bill.
http://www.cfiflistmanager.org/stimulusxx.html
To fix the economy is going to require 3 things:
1) Cut government spending dramatically (good luck) for useless pork projects.
2) It appears the central banking system has a solvency crisis. This is much different and worse then a liquidity crisis. The government should not be getting in the way of central banks raising money. Companies that are economic pillars are now having to sell off large portions of equity to other sovereign nations. While this could be a national security issue in some respects, if the central banks fail in selling off assets to raise money then it appears the entire system will collapse in 2009 or 2010. That would be a depression folks.
3) We need to create jobs in the service sector. The country needs to do the Apollo program of energy independance and waiting 2-3 years may result in too little too late like in the Great Depression where Hoover did this with our superhighway job creation program.
Most of my middle class friends are underwater right now and grumpy. The party is over folks and we had best be prepared to remember the statement of JFK ‘ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country’. This is something we haven’t had to practice (sacrifice for one another as Americans) in a long, long time.
nice of McAmnesty to keep his illegal constituents in mind.
LOL! Isn't this something!
They give us back $600 out of the several thousand the took from us in the first place and THEY are the heros!
And, to top that off, we WILL be taxed on that $600 next year!
I have concluded that all of Washington is a training ground for con men!
That's exactly what it is. An election year bribe.
And if you're rich, in the class envy world where $87,000 is rich, forget it you won't see a red cent.
(But when it comes time for a tax hike to pay off this 168 billion in deficit spending, you'd better believe they're going to remember the 'rich' again.)
I plan on taking my boss and his wife out to dinner.
He will receive no rebate. After all he is way too rich to get something.
As I think back,,, I cannot think of ever working for someone who had less money then me.
Well anyway, Dave deserves a good meal. He has done all he can to keep me employed through good and bad times.
OH yeah! You can bank on it!
Yep - that’s the first thing I thought of - I’m a mid-level white collar (not even management) employee in San Francisco and Congress apparently believes I’m rich.
I’m sure gonna love it when they raise MY taxes to 48%.
I had heard the Senate was going to raise the income ceiling for the rebates - I can’t find anything anywhere that sayd they did.
It’s vote buying, pure and simple.
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