Do what's needed for economy
Inter Lake editorial
The country is about to start a new era when Barack Obama is sworn in as president Jan. 20, and all the optimism that his election brought to many Americans about the future will surely be needed in coming months.
Obama was fully aware of that last week when he announced some details of the biggest government spending project in history, a project aimed at helping the nation's economy get back on its feet.
The president-elect warned that "a bad situation could become dramatically worse" if Washington does not take bold action on a plan that, most likely, could cost as much as $775 billion over two years in tax cuts and spending.
That awareness needs to shape the political climate over the next year, at least. Many in Washington, including Republicans, know full well that there is deep anxiety in the country over the turbulent economy. They know that a 16-year-high jobless rate of 7.4 percent is not some abstract loss of jobs in some distant state. They know it has ripples right in their own backyards, in places like the Flathead Valley, where there has been a rash of disturbing layoffs among the area's biggest employers recently.
People sense that failing to act in any fashion would be disastrous, and that's why President Obama will probably have a good chance to put together a successful package of remedies. It will include a variety of tax cuts that will go the furthest in advancing spending and investment, and it will include funding for some worthy projects.
Of course, there will be debate about some particulars in the package, and Congress must be vigilant against waste and larger government with greater indebtedness. There is also the risk of belated infrastructure spending that could induce inflation and protract an economic recovery.
Nonetheless, something must be done.
Obama speaks firmly about the need for accountability and transparency, and the need to reverse "an era of profound irresponsibility that stretched from corporate boardrooms to the halls of power in Washington."
No doubt Obama realizes how exceedingly difficult it will be trying to ride herd on how the stimulus money is dispersed by a vast federal bureaucracy, much less state and local governments across the country. Already, wish lists are being written.
U.S. News and World Report had a story this week about an Alabama town with a population of 194 that has drafted a stunning list of stimulus projects worth $375 million.
That's the type of thing Obama is up against in trying to ensure taxpayer dollars get the biggest bang in stirring up the economy.
But what's the alternative? Doing nothing?
"We are still the nation that has overcome great fears and improbable odds," Obama said. "If we act with the urgency and seriousness this moment requires, I know that we can do it again."
The American people are confident also, and with the right leadership, they - and the nation's economy -will weather the storm.