Okay, so where's the other $827.9 billion going? Can you help me out here?

[patrice]

http://online.wsj.com/public/resources/documents/st_STIMULUS_STATIC_20090210.html

What do I say to this email?

"Well, there's a fine-grained breakout of $90 million in minor waffles on things that have been on somebody's agenda for years for purposes other than "stimulus" -- but still no information on the other $827.9 billion we're supposed to tell our congressfolks we support.

We ought to task the WSJ staff to dig out what spending is being voted on, not just what has been jiggered at the remote margins. Pelosi certainly won't tell us, and Obama won't go beyond "it's about the right total"?

Right . . . but it matters whether it's nearly a trillion bucks for shoeshines and Super Bowl tickets for AFCSME dues-payers or for restoring Kansas City's sewers and rural highways. Capital improvements create value into the future, to help generate dollars with which to pay the Chinese back. (The additional annual bond interest to be incurred compares closely with the total Defense budget, so we ought to take this all a bit more seriously; the trillions committed in the last two weeks could have largely eliminated the actuarial/accrual accounting Social Security shortfall for several decades to come.)

[MiniMe]

1. It's been cut down to 790 billion, 65% stimulus and 35% tax cuts

Which is better than it was. Collins seems to be happy with it, so we won't lose her.