[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 17]
[House]
[Pages 22822-22823]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     RECOVERY ACT HAS INCREASED GDP

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Virginia (Mr. Connolly) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. CONNOLLY of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, this summer many of my 
colleagues on the other side of the aisle lined up to criticize the 
Recovery and Reinvestment Act on the floor of the House claiming it 
wasn't working. In an August 21 newsletter, the minority leader stated, 
``By any objective measure, the trillion-dollar `stimulus' spending 
bill isn't working.''
  Let's examine some of those objective measures:
  The number of new unemployment claims dropped in August, for the 
lowest total of the year. In addition, the number of people claiming 
continuing unemployment benefits for more than 1 week decreased by 
123,000. Unemployment remains a challenge, because, as we all know, 
unemployment is a lagging indicator. But because of the Recovery Act, 
we have saved 1 million jobs that otherwise would have been lost in 
this economy.
  This June, home sales increased by 11 percent over May, the largest 
increase over 8 years. And total home sales this year have increased by 
3.4 percent over 2008, indicating that the housing market is 
stabilizing.
  After declining by 0.1 percent in the last economic quarter of the 
Bush administration, U.S. productivity growth has increased 6.6 percent 
in the most recent quarter.
  The manufacturing sector is improving. Orders for durable goods were 
up 4.9 percent in July, the largest increase in 2 years, and has risen 
in 3 of the past 5 months.
  The Consumer Confidence Index rose once again in August to 54.1, more 
than double the February low of 25, demonstrating that consumers are 
viewing the economy in an increasingly positive light.
  The Dow Jones Industrial Average has grown more than 11 percent this 
year, returning value to 401(k)s and college funds of American 
families. We know there is a lot more to be done, but even Republican 
economists have stated the stimulus is working.
  Mark Zandi, the economic adviser to John McCain's Presidential 
campaign last year, said that the stimulus has contributed to GDP 
growth. He stated, ``As the fiscal stimulus provides its maximum 
benefit in the next few months, real GDP should turn from negative to 
positive in the current quarter.'' Current projections show that the 
Recovery Act increased GDP by 2.3 percent this year.
  When we voted on the Recovery Act this winter, economists from across 
the political spectrum emphatically stated that a fiscal stimulus was 
essential. Dr. Zandi, for example, stated, ``The stimulus plan as laid 
out will provide a vital boost to a flagging economy.'' President 
Reagan's chief economic adviser Martin Feldstein testified before a 
joint House and Senate committee that a large fiscal stimulus would be 
essential to avoid catastrophic unemployment. Ben Bernanke, the 
Republican-appointed Chairman of the Federal Reserve stated, ``The 
incoming administration and Congress are currently discussing a 
substantial fiscal package that, if enacted, could provide a 
significant boost to economic activity.'' Since then, that same 
Chairman has said explicitly that the stimulus bill for the recovery 
is, in fact, responsible for a large part of that recovery.
  Dr. Zandi, Dr. Feldstein, and Chairman Bernanke were all right, as 
the objective data now shows.
  My friends on the other side of the aisle have made a decision to 
oppose virtually every initiative of President Obama no matter what the 
substance or content. Now, as President Obama sets to reform our broken 
health care system, they are at it once again, refusing to play a 
constructive role in the process.
  President Obama has worked toward a bipartisan solution for health 
care and has made a number of positive overtures to incorporate several 
concepts proposed by the Republican side of the aisle. For example, he 
committed to tort reform. He embraced Senator John McCain's initiative 
on providing low-cost protection for individuals with preexisting 
medical conditions. He pledged to work with any serious effort to 
improve and provide more affordable, accessible health care for all 
Americans. Despite the fact that the President has incorporated 
Republican ideas and proposals into his plan, the other side still 
refuses to work with him. Their plan: Just say, ``no.''
  When faced with the largest recession since World War II, the 
American people didn't want partisan bickering; they wanted solutions. 
With the Recovery Act and other stabilizing measures, we have enacted 
those solutions, and we have seen positive results. Our economic 
recovery efforts are working. But the Republicans just said, ``no.''
  The need for health care reform is clear. Health insurance premiums 
over the past decade have increased three times greater than incomes, 
and they will increase 5 percent more this year. Millions of Americans 
with preexisting medical conditions are finding themselves unable to 
access health care even if they have health insurance. A recent survey 
by the Kaiser Family Foundation revealed that without reform, 8 percent 
of businesses will drop health insurance for their employees 
altogether. And still, Republicans are saying, ``no.''
  When providing affordable and accessible health care, the American 
people will not accept ``no'' for an answer any longer. They want to 
hear us say, ``yes.''

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