The stimulus package is doomed to fail.

[Geoff R. Casavant]

Like Senator McCain, I had no knowledge of economics. Unlike Senator McCain, I'm attempting to remedy that situation and have begun reading on the topic. I started at the easiest level -- Economics For Dummies.

In the sections on macroeconomics, there was a discussion of government efforts to stimulate an economy out of a recession. I doubt I could adequately explain the details in a short post, but the conclusion was, there is a short window when any stimulus can work, because if too much time passes, firms have enough time to pre-emptively raise prices to make up for the short-term dip in their profits that the stimulus would otherwise cause.

In our case, we are talking about a three-month gap between the time the stimulus package was announced and the time when it will go into effect. And sure enough, I'm seeing prices go up on a lot of things that didn't used to go up at all, or only slowly. By the time I get my stimulus check in another month, we'll need a lot of it just to stay in place.

Here's what gets me, though -- I'm going to assume Bush's economic advisors know this too and know more about economics than what can be found in a Dummies book, so they know the stimulus will not work. So what's the true motivation?

[Jim__]

1. Maybe their motivation is that people get checks in the mail a few months before the election.

People like getting checks in the mail.

[Skittles]

3. same motivation as the last time they pulled this stunt

absolutely

[NEOhiodemocrat]

2. I will like the check in the mail

and sending a chunk of it to the Democratic nominee! Sure don't think it will solve the economic problem, but hope if enough of us do this it will help solve the 'leadership' problem.

[Warpy]

4. It's a sop to voters

so they will be properly grateful in November. It's also going to keep utility companies in the black.

Unfortunately, it won't pay a month's mortgage and it won't supply found money for a spree at the mall so the effect on the consumer economy will be minimal, if at all.

It's simply too little and too late.

[joeglow3]

5. As a tax CPA, I think some of it works

Namely, I liked the original expansion of the Section 179 deduction for small businesses. This time around, however, we only have bonus depreciation which all companies get. I say this because almost ALL of my clients decided to invest a lot more money in capital equipment then they otherwise would have the last time around. Thus, I do think it serves a dual purpose - temporarily lower tax burdens for small businesses and increase their spending.

However, I am certainly no economist, so I really don't know what impact it had on the economy. I just know their spending certainly did increase.

[CanonRay]

6. The motivation is to keep the stock market up

until they leave office, then let the whole thing go down the shitter, and blame it on the Dems.