The New New Deal (76 page)
Authors: Michael Grunwald
400
prime-time speech to Congress:
Obama speech, September 8, 2011,
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=96661
.
401
The number of Americans without shelter actually declined:
Housing and Urban Development point-in-time estimates of homelessness,
http://www.hudhre.info/index.cfm?do=viewResource&ResourceID=4568
; “The State of Homelessness in
America 2012,” National Alliance to End Homelessness, January 17, 2012,
http://www.endhomelessness.org/content/article/detail/4361/
.
402
analysis by the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities:
Arloc Sherman, “Poverty and Financial Distress Would Have Been Substantially Worse in 2010 Without Government Action, New Census Data Show,” Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, November 7, 2011,
http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=3610
.
403
major private forecasting firms:
Private forecasters’ assessments were listed in the Council of Economic Advisers’ eighth quarterly report on the Recovery Act’s impact. “The Economic Impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 Eighth Quarterly Report,” CEA, December 9, 2011.
404
80 percent of the economists:
IGM Economic Experts Panel, University of Chicago Booth School of Business, February 12, 2012,
http://www.igmchicago.org/igm-economic-experts-panel/poll-results?SurveyID=SV_cw5O9LNJL1oz4Xi
.
405
A
Washington Post
review of early stimulus studies:
Dylan Matthews, “Did the Stimulus Work? A Review of the Nine Best Studies on the Subject,” Wonkblog,
Washington Post
, August 24, 2011,
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ezra-klein/post/did-the-stimulus-work-a-review-of-the-nine-best-studies-on-the-subject/2011/08/16/gIQAThbibJ_blog.html
. There were two other negative studies, but one had statistically insignificant results, and one didn’t make empirical sense.
406
by prominent Republican economist John Taylor:
John B. Taylor, “An Empirical Analysis of the Revival of Fiscal Activism in the 2000s,” Stanford University,
Journal of Economic Literature
, September 2011,
http://www.stanford.edu/~johntayl/JEL_Taylor_Final%20Pages.pdf
.
407
“killing solar energy by having the government play the role”: Charlie Rose
, PBS, December 19, 2011,
http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/12045
.
408
expanded sixfold:
U.S. Solar Market Insight Reports for 2009–2011, Solar Energy Industries Association,
http://www.seia.org/cs/research/solarinsight
.
409
$50 million to build wing dikes and weirs along the Mississippi River:
Michael Grunwald, “The Floods: A Man-Made Disaster?,”
Time
, June 25, 2008,
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1818040,00.html
.
410
It also pushed thirty-nine states to rewrite their eligibility rules:
National Employment Law Project data,
http://www.nelp.org/index.php/site/issues/category/modernizing_unemployment_insurance
.
411
renewable electricity doubled during Obama’s first three years:
Net electricity generation for solar, wind and geothermal, Energy Information Administration,
http://www.eia.gov/electricity/monthly/epm_table_grapher.cfm?t=epmt_1_1_a
.
412
“The reports of Solyndra’s death have been greatly exaggerated”:
Michael Grunwald, “The White House Wouldn’t Answer Republicans’ Questions, So I’ll Try,” Swampland blog,
Time
, June 24, 2011,
http://swampland.time.com/2011/06/24/the-white-house-wouldnt-answer-republican-questions-so-ill-try/
.
413
“No, I don’t … overall, it’s doing well”:
Jake Tapper, “Seeking to Muddy Waters on Layoffs, Conservative Group Unleashing $6 Million Ad Campaign Against President Obama and Solyndra,” ABC News, January 13, 2012,
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2012/01/seeking-to-muddy-waters-on-layoffs-conservative-group-unleashing-6-million-ad-campaign-against-president-obama-and-solyndra/
.
414
“Is there criminal activity? Perhaps not”:
Darren Samuelsohn, “GOP Running Out of Gas on Solyndra,”
Politico
, March 27, 2012,
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0312/74564.html
.
415
the former finance chairman of John McCain’s presidential campaign:
Herb Allison,
who served as McCain’s national finance chairman, conducted the independent review that found that the loan guarantee program would cost less than expected. “Report of the Independent Consultant’s Review with Respect to the Department of Energy Loan and Loan Guarantee Portfolio,” January 31, 2012,
http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/docs/report_on_doe_loan_and_guarantee_portfolio.pdf
. Jim Snyder and Brian Wingfield did the report for Bloomberg Government, February 11, 2012,
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-02-10/risk-management-needed-for-energy-loan-guarantees-report-says.html
.
416
Innovation doesn’t move in a straight line:
The Energy Department did an insightful report on its Recovery Act work. “Making a Down Payment on the Nation’s Energy and Environmental Future,” October 20, 2010.
417
While Congress has squabbled over Obama’s supposed ban on incandescents:
Michael Grunwald, “Incandescent Light Bulb Insanity and the Groucho Marx Republicans,” Swampland blog,
Time
, July 12, 2011,
http://swampland.time.com/2011/07/12/incandescent-light-bulb-insanity-and-the-groucho-marx-republicans/
.
418
health IT firms that used to spend their time:
Ezekiel Emanuel, “An Unsung Victory in Health care,” Reuters, March 6, 2012.
Epilogue: The Choice
419
“A stimulus plan is needed”:
Mitt Romney, A Republican Stimulus Plan,
National Review
, December 19, 2008.
420
“what’s left is the government sector”:
Mitt Romney, Testimony before House Republican Economic Stimulus Working Group, January 15, 2009.
Time
Magazine:
1
Official White House Photo by Pete Souza:
2
,
3
,
5
,
6
,
7
,
9
,
13
,
14
,
16
,
23
US Department of Housing and Urban Development:
4
Ohio Department of Transportation:
11
House Republican Conference:
15
Steve Jurvetson:
18
National Park Service:
19
Metropolitan Transportaion Authority:
20
US Navy:
22
Pages numbers beginning with 465 refer to notes.
A123 Systems,
267
,
361
–63,
365
,
375
Abound Solar,
372
Accountability Every Day,
269
Acela trains,
355
ACORN,
199
,
227
,
231
,
270
,
290
,
315
,
317
Afghanistan War,
18
,
111
,
291
,
349
,
383
,
473
African Heritage Dancers and Drummers of Washington,
310
aggregate demand,
58
AGILE,
378
Agnew, Patrick,
314
Agriculture Department, U.S.,
231
–32,
332
AIG bailout,
71
,
90
–91,
280
,
284
,
392
air conditioning,
377
Akerlof, George,
84
Alliance for Climate Protection,
317
Alliance to Save Energy,
167
Allison, Herb,
494
–95
Alter, Jonathan,
91
Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT),
212
–13,
218
,
229
–30,
237
,
240
,
405
,
430
,
483
American Economic Recovery Plan,
107
,
472
“American Option, The,”
218
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (2009; Recovery Act; stimulus package):
accountability for,
128
,
148
,
177
–78,
260
–62
as agent of change,
7
,
12
,
18
–19,
170
–76,
249
,
291
,
441
–48
attempts to revive support for,
301
–2,
382
–84,
390
–96
bipartisan goal of,
132
,
178
,
225
–26
Congressional support needed for,
131
–39
cost projections for,
10
,
63
,
75
,
79
–80,
94
,
99
,
102
,
107
,
110
,
111
,
115
–17,
119
,
120
,
133
–34,
145
,
161
,
168
,
194
,
212
,
213
,
219
,
229
,
237
,
484
as counterfactual policy,
424
–34,
445
crafted during transition,
92
–96
Democratic attacks on,
383
as Democratic partisan process,
188
–89
depression avoided through,
447
as earmark free,
177
,
180
,
322
,
327
effectiveness of,
7
,
9
,
11
–12,
13
,
19
,
36
,
39
,
263
–65,
297
–301,
310
,
311
–14,
318
–19,
322
,
324
,
326
–30,
338
,
341
,
349
,
365
,
367
,
370
–72,
396
,
398
,
415
–17,
424
–34,
441
–48,
452
–53
final House-Senate version of,
228
–49
GOP alternative to,
142
,
197
–200
GOP amendments to,
218
–19
GOP negative recasting of,
149
–50,
180
–204,
298
–302
GOP support for,
215
GOP unanimity against,
189
–98,
404
;
see also
Republican obstructionism
identification signs for,
236
,
447
implementation obstacles in,
303
–15
lack of formal draft of,
132
–33
legacy of,
447
–48
lessons learned from,
244
–49
liberal criticism of,
9
–10,
19
,
120
,
212
,
219
logo of,
302
management challenges of,
253
–77
messaging failure in,
202
–3,
235
,
244
–45,
318
–19,
338
,
391
,
393
,
416
–17
misrepresentation and misinformation about,
180
–85,
203
,
278
,
296
,
299
–300,
310
,
316
–25,
343
misunderstanding of,
301
New Deal vs.,
9
–12
new precedents set by,
10
–12
Obama’s call to arms for,
154
–55
Obama’s concessions in,
236
–37,
240
,
243
Obama’s victories in,
237
–40,
243
as outlined in inaugural speech,
26
,
183
as overshadowed and ignored,
18
–19,
75
,
157
,
235
,
262
,
264
,
373
–74,
416
oversight for,
11
,
177
–78,
256
–66,
296
,
320
,
397
–98