Huckleberries Online

Barker: Idaho Pols Will Take Fed $$$

Posted by DFO

Feb. 16, 2009 8:19 a.m. • 13 comments

Republican Senate President Pro Tem Bob Geddes, is like a lot of Idahoans today. His retirement plans were changed when his “401 K turned into a 201 K plan.” He thinks too much spending, not just by government but by many of us who overextended our credit, is what put us in this place. So he’s very skeptical that spending will get us out. But he resented the suggestions that these views meant he and other state leaders wouldn’t spend the money if it came or that they would be hypocrites to spend it/Rocky Barker, Idaho Statesman. More here.

Question: Are Idaho political leaders being hypocritical by stating their opposition to the stimulus package while being willing to spend the money coming to the state?

13 comments on this post so far. Add yours!

Bob on February 16 at 8:49 a.m.
Yes. Here, let me coin a phrase:

There are no budget cutters in a pig trough.
Bob on February 16 at 8:53 a.m.
Or “there are no dieters in an Old Country Buffet”
keithincda on February 16 at 9:01 a.m.
Here is a state by state breakdown on construction spending for infrastructure

http://enr.construction.com/business_management/finance/2009/extras/Conference_Report_on_H.R._1_Total_Infrastructure_Investment_Combined_Table.pdf

$38 billion total
keithincda on February 16 at 9:06 a.m.
A good recap of some of the bills nuances…

“The package’s appropriations portion—which includes most of the construction-related spending—will flow out more slowly. CBO estimates that only $34.8 billion, or 11% of the bill’s $308.3 billion in appropriation outlays, will occur by Sept. 30, the end of fiscal 2009. But 2010 will be a much bigger year, with $110.7 billion in outlays, CBO says.”

The largest portion of the appropriation doesn’t hit til 2010.

Taken from this article…

http://enr.construction.com/business_management/finance/2009/0214-CongressApprovesStimulus.asp
Transplanted_Texan on February 16 at 9:14 a.m.
I wouldn’t say so. You’ve got to deal with reality, even if it’s not the reality you were hoping for. It’s kind of like the campaign finance reformer who plays under the current rules while simultaneously campaigning to change those rules.
Cis on February 16 at 1:57 p.m.
“He thinks too much spending, not just by government but by many of us who overextended our credit, is what put us in this place. “? Speak for yourself, Mr. Geddes,

I for one, and there are many more like me… have played it the true and straight way. If we didn’t have the money to spend.. we didn’t. We did not buy beyond our means, We pay our bills on time. We did without, we don’t follow the Jones… We did it right. And now… we get blamed with the rest, we get it stuck to us, like the rest..
Arch_Druid on February 17 at 12:14 a.m.
You should have watched this one on “60 Minutes” last night. A mortgage Lending company that doesn’t play by the rules and willfully suckered a lot of people into mortgages and etc. beyond their means to pay it back. Seems Wachovia swallowed this toxic company and collapsed because of the poison soon afterwards. Gedde can’t blame it all on the little people. And because of companies like this, yeah you bet we’ll get stuck with it.

And I would regard it as hypocrisy. To be among the bashers and insist on the money.

« Back to Huckleberries Online

You must be logged in to post comments.
Please create a profile or log in here.

About this blog

D.F. Oliveria is a columnist and blogger for The Spokesman-Review. Huckleberries Online was judged the best 2008 Idaho newspaper blog by the Idaho Press Club. And the best 2007 news blog in the Pacific Northwest by the Society for Professional Journalist. Print Huckleberries is a past winner of the Herb Caen Memorial Column contest by the National Association of Newspaper Columnists. The Readership Institute of Northwestern University cited this blog as a good example of online community journalism.