We all know that, since 2008, we have been mired in the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. To stop the downward spiral and reinvigorate our economy, many leading economists, including presidential candidate John McCain’s economic advisor, recommended that the federal government pass an economic stimulus bill. Congress considered this advice and passed H.R. 1, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which was signed into law by President Obama on February 17.
Of course, the recovery has a long way to go. We did not get to this point overnight and the slowdown has spread globally. It will take time to turn the economy around and get it headed in the right direction again. We are, however, starting to see some signs of recovery, according to some of the same economists who recommended the stimulus legislation. Some economists have noted recently that we are starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Many of you have voiced concern about the cost of the recovery package and I share those concerns. I believed then and still believe that the scope of the economic problems necessitated the significant investment in the recovery solution. Once the economy is stable again we will need to concentrate our efforts at reducing the budget deficit, as we did in the 1990’s, when we saw a substantial deficit turned into a $5.6 trillion surplus by the end of that decade.
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Sincerely,
Jerry F. Costello
12th District of Illinois
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