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Stimulus Plan Is 'Beginning'

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Los Angeles Times

Published: February 18, 2009

DENVER - Even as his aides left open the possibility that another stimulus bill might be necessary, President Barack Obama on Tuesday signed into law the $787 billion package that is a cornerstone of his plan to reverse a dramatic economic downturn.

The president cast the stimulus, the first major piece of legislation passed on his watch, as a milestone.

"I don't want to pretend that today marks the end of our economic problems," he told a crowd of supporters before signing the bill. "Nor does it constitute all of what we're going to have to do to turn our economy around. But today does mark the beginning of the end, the beginning of what we need to do to create jobs for Americans scrambling in the wake of layoffs."

The White House staged the ceremony in Denver to underscore how the stimulus might help struggling cities recover. Unemployment in the Denver area stands at 6.3 percent, and home foreclosures here topped 1,000 in December.

Although the bill represents a political victory for Obama, the win wasn't as smooth as he had hoped. At an early stage, the new administration was aiming for solid bipartisan support and an 80-vote majority in the Senate. Just three Republicans wound up supporting the bill in the Senate; none of the House's Republicans voted for it.

In his speech, Obama ignored the partisan nature of the vote. Instead, he stressed the support the bill received from Republican governors, mayors and various outside interest groups.

Normally the White House is careful about managing public expectations, cautioning that a full economic recovery could take years. In his remarks Tuesday, however, the president made ample use of superlatives. He cited provisions in the stimulus plan intended to ensure that people who lose their jobs don't also lose their medical coverage, part of a series of health care initiatives that, taken together, "have done more in 30 days to advance the cause of health care reform than this country has done in an entire decade," Obama said.

He portrayed the stimulus as "the most sweeping economic-recovery package in our history."

Still, it might not be enough.

Obama press secretary Robert Gibbs, aboard Air Force One en route to Denver, would not rule out a push for another stimulus.

Keyword: Stimulus, to see highlights of the plan.

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