http://lettexansruntexas.com/uncategorized/one-year-later-where-does-america-stand/ Let Texans Run Texas – Congressman John Culberson’s blog Wed, 08 Sep 2010 23:39:40 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.2 http://lettexansruntexas.com/uncategorized/one-year-later-where-does-america-stand/#comment-1224 health quote Wed, 24 Feb 2010 18:00:41 +0000 http://lettexansruntexas.com/?p=197#comment-1224 Since stimulus spending is guided by current politicians, and not by investors who have a stake in the future finances of the government, government spending is almost never directed towards economy growing capital investments, but rather to short term consumption designed to benefit political leaders in near-term elections. When money is directed at capital projects, they're very often in the nature of "make work" projects that are not economically worthwhile, but just provide the salve of some near-term employment, which basically means they're an inefficient means to pay the equivalent of welfare and unemployment benefits. This stimulus is a case in point. Most of it has been shoveled to states to help them maintain welfare, healthcare, other unemployment benefits and meet government agency payrolls. Some of it was directed to "shovel ready" projects, which means projects the states and the federal government could identify and implement quickly but which were not sufficiently worthwhile to do before they were directed to find make work projects to help keep people (mainly unionized construction and contractor labor) employed. None of this spending is an "investment," but just supports short-term consumption -- the people (i.e.,. unemployed, government workers, union contractors and laborers) receiving that money will largely just turn around and spend it on consumer goods. That will provide an immediate boost to the extent that it's taking money that would otherwise by stowed away in bank accounts and under mattresses and pushed back into the economy, but long term there will be no economic return on that money to justify the debt incurred. It's the equivalent of a family running up the credit card to keep itself in house and home after the breadwinner loses his or her job. Since stimulus spending is guided by current politicians, and not by investors who have a stake in the future finances of the government, government spending is almost never directed towards economy growing capital investments, but rather to short term consumption designed to benefit political leaders in near-term elections. When money is directed at capital projects, they’re very often in the nature of “make work” projects that are not economically worthwhile, but just provide the salve of some near-term employment, which basically means they’re an inefficient means to pay the equivalent of welfare and unemployment benefits. This stimulus is a case in point. Most of it has been shoveled to states to help them maintain welfare, healthcare, other unemployment benefits and meet government agency payrolls. Some of it was directed to “shovel ready” projects, which means projects the states and the federal government could identify and implement quickly but which were not sufficiently worthwhile to do before they were directed to find make work projects to help keep people (mainly unionized construction and contractor labor) employed. None of this spending is an “investment,” but just supports short-term consumption — the people (i.e.,. unemployed, government workers, union contractors and laborers) receiving that money will largely just turn around and spend it on consumer goods. That will provide an immediate boost to the extent that it’s taking money that would otherwise by stowed away in bank accounts and under mattresses and pushed back into the economy, but long term there will be no economic return on that money to justify the debt incurred. It’s the equivalent of a family running up the credit card to keep itself in house and home after the breadwinner loses his or her job.

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