[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 2]
[Senate]
[Pages 1544-1545]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                            STIMULUS PACKAGE

  Mr. MENENDEZ. Mr. President, our Nation needs to take a critical step 
to move our economy forward. We had a chance last night to make that 
happen. We had a chance in the Senate to make that happen. We had a 
chance to pass a package that would provide relief to more Americans, 
would put rebates in the hands of more taxpayers, would give checks to 
more than 20 million seniors who were not in the House bill, would have 
taken the opportunity to put money in the hands of 250,000 disabled 
veterans, would extend unemployment benefits for those who are looking 
to find work but cannot in this economy and who are on the verge of 
finding themselves without unemployment compensation benefits, and 
would provide important relief for businesses suffering and help those 
most in need with the cost of heating their homes this winter.
  Enough to stop the process, many of our Republican colleagues bucked 
that opportunity. They said they wanted to deliver relief as quickly as 
possible, but when they had the chance to provide that relief to the 
most Americans, far more than the House bill, they said no.
  I listen to our colleagues and I ask myself: What is it that says so 
many in our country--seniors on fixed incomes with increasing demands 
in their fuel and heating costs, those who still own their homes or 
those who pay utility bills, rising prescription costs, so many 
different elements of their lives, and they have fixed incomes, they 
have worked a lifetime and find themselves with challenges they cannot 
meet economically--why do those 20 million not deserve to be part of a 
stimulus package, especially when they will put that money right back 
into the economy quickly, which is the whole purpose of a stimulus in 
the first place? If we can have a stimulus that also helps a broad 
section of our universe, those who have worked hard, played by the 
rules, helped build families and communities and now find themselves 
struggling, why wouldn't we do that?
  Why wouldn't we take care of disabled veterans and have them be part 
of helping meet their challenges? They have served their Nation with 
honor and dignity and now find themselves challenged. Why wouldn't we 
have them be part of a solution that also helps to stimulate the 
economy?
  For all this talk about quickness, it is also quickness in the 
ability to make this happen in a way that will have a real impact on 
our economy but a real impact, also, in the lives of Americans who are 
struggling. Far too many Americans have already suffered at the hands 
of an economy that is sliding backward. Far too many have seen their 
homes taken away from them on the brink of foreclosure. Far too many 
have been in search of work or have been waiting in vain for their 
paychecks to increase.
  For those who have not yet felt the effects of an economy that is 
sputtering, they fear and worry, wondering when they will feel the 
squeeze. That worry is understandable. The signs are less than good.
  Last Friday, we learned that 17,000 jobs were lost in January alone--
the first monthly loss of jobs in more than 4 years. Growth slowed to a 
near halt at the end of last year, coming in under 1 percent. We saw 
the biggest increase in unemployment rates since after September 11.
  We all overwhelmingly agree on the need to take action to stimulate 
our economy, and fast. It is wonderful to have come to that type of 
consensus on the need. What we need is a genuine spirit of 
bipartisanship in the Senate to bring us forward to conclusion. We had 
that opportunity yesterday.
  Certainly, what the House did is a solid start. It would largely 
achieve what we would hope to see in a stimulus plan. But, as with many 
first attempts, there are clearly some significant holes. The House 
plan would get us almost but not quite where we should be. This was our 
chance--hopefully, we will revisit it--to get it right. We are not 
talking about adding a load of new provisions, as some are implying. We 
are talking about making sensible changes to make sure we will have the 
most benefit for those most in need, and at the same time, because we 
are providing a benefit for those who are most in need, we are helping 
achieve the goal we want: stimulating the economy in a way that we will 
either avoid a recession--although certainly Wall Street is telling us 
they are convinced there is a recession--or at least narrow the time, 
the scope, and the impact of a recession.
  The value of any plan we consider should be based on one simple 
benchmark: the number of people we can reach and how effectively we can 
put needed dollars into the economy. Based on that benchmark, the 
Senate clearly has a better plan. The economic stimulus package we have 
before us is a plan the Senate and the country can get behind. It will 
get money into the hands of people who have basic needs to cover, 
people who will spend it immediately. That is the first goal of a 
stimulus.
  Our plan puts rebates in the hands of 20 million seniors. It may not 
have been intentional, but the fact is, the House plan leaves out 
millions of seniors who are low income, whose primary source of income 
is Social Security. In my State of New Jersey, more than 1 million 
seniors are eligible for a rebate under the Senate plan. Under the 
House bill, they would not receive a dime. If we think there is no 
economic link to including seniors, the fact is, seniors spend much 
more of their income than any other age group. People over the age of 
65 are responsible for a full 14 percent of all consumer spending.
  The bottom line is, a true stimulus package would help those who 
spend the most and are most in need. The Senate plan does just that.
  The Senate plan also reaches another group that is excluded from the 
House bill--disabled veterans. Under our plan, we ensure that a quarter 
million disabled veterans who would not otherwise receive a rebate will 
get a check. When those veterans went to war, they never forgot whom 
they were fighting for, and we cannot forget them now.
  In several ways, the Senate plan puts resources toward where 
economists agree they are most effective--extending unemployment 
benefits. It isn't just common sense, because it helps those who are 
suffering most. That is, of course, common sense, but it also gets the 
best bang for the buck in economic terms. For every dollar we invest in 
extending unemployment benefits, we generate $1.64 in economic 
activity.
  This universe is known. They are out there. They are facing an 
immediate challenge. They will have the resources in their hands much 
quicker than formulating a rebate check. It is another reason--
timeliness. Despite broad consensus that such a stimulus plan must 
include additional benefits for those who have been out of work for an 
extended period of time, such benefits are absent from the House bill.
  There is no question unemployed workers are facing tough times. Long-
term unemployment is far higher than usual and nearly twice what it was 
when we were facing our last recession in the year 2001.
  In New Jersey, more than 66,000 workers will be exhausting their 
unemployment benefits by June of this year, joining more than a million 
workers nationwide facing long-term unemployment.
  Last week, almost 70,000 new workers filed for unemployment 
benefits--the highest level since Hurricane Katrina.
  The need to address the economic hardships facing unemployed workers 
is real. We have seen in the past that unemployment benefits have 
stimulated the economy in times of hardship, and they should be part of 
this plan this time around.
  The Senate plan also includes important extensions of tax credits for 
energy efficiency and the production of alternative energy, including 
solar energy. Credits such as these help consumers purchase new 
appliances and greener sources of energy for their home. We also extend 
the solar energy credit, which helps drive the purchase of solar 
panels. In New Jersey, which is only second to California in the number 
of solar installations, this has an enormous impact. This provision 
could

[[Page 1545]]

save more than 40,000 jobs, at a time when we see increasing job 
losses, and it can do something to help stimulate the economy by the 
purchase of these products immediately--so save jobs, purchase 
products, make the investments and, at the same time, stem the tide of 
the movement toward greater unemployment that we see in the country.
  Finally, our plan provides needed relief to industries that are 
hurting and may have to lay off employees in the coming months. I am 
pleased this package takes into account the unique challenges facing 
the housing industry right now. We all know this is a sector of our 
economy that is under incredible strains right now. The Senate plan 
would ensure they are able to spread out their losses so hopefully we 
can stop some of the bleeding in the housing sector and, in the 
process, prevent thousands from losing their jobs.
  This stimulus package we have before us is not perfect. Some of us 
would have liked to have included increased Medicaid payments to 
States, which would have provided a needed boost to States struggling 
to provide health care. But the fact is, if we only pass the House 
version, we would be falling far short.
  All of what I have talked about--20 million seniors, a quarter 
million disabled veterans, the essence of how the provisions on the 
housing components were included, the whole question of the universe of 
the unemployed seeking to get a job, not being able to find it, and not 
having the resources to sustain themselves and their families--all of 
that would not be in the plan. All of that would not be in the plan.
  We can do this. Of course, that is in addition to the rebates for 
both single people and married couples and married couples who have 
children who are already a part of our package as well, building upon 
the House proposals.
  So let's pass a package that has the widest possible impact. Let's 
pass a package that does not leave out 20 million seniors, that takes 
care of a quarter million disabled veterans, and provides rebates to as 
many Americans as possible.
  That is acting wisely, and it can be done quickly. We need our 
colleagues to join with us in the sense of urgency that exists, and to 
say to those 20 million seniors, those quarter of a million veterans, 
the millions who are unemployed: We stand with you as fellow Americans 
in this time of need in turning our economy around for all of us.
  That was the choice we had yesterday. I hope we will have that choice 
again. I hope the hearts of some will be softened in this process and 
that they will cast a vote to move in a much different direction.
  With that, Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Rhode Island is recognized.

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