The American Spectator : The Spectacle Blog : The $1.16 Trillion Stimulus

Text Size

Most news articles have used the $825 billion figure as the cost of the stimulus and a CBO report released earlier today had pegged it at $816 billion. However, as it turns out, that substantially understates the full cost because it doesn't include the increased interest payments required to service the debt that will have to be issued to pay for the legislation. In response to a request by Rep. Paul Ryan, the CBO has now estimated that that interest payments will cost an additional $347 billion over the 2009-2019 time period, assuming the costs of the stimulus package are not offset by future legislation. That would bring the total cost of the package to $1.16 trillion.

A PDF of CBO Director Douglas Elmendorf's letter to Rep. Ryan, with a table breaking down the cost by year, is available here.

View all comments (5) | Leave a comment

Thom| 1.27.09 @ 6:02PM

a trillion here, a trillion there, pretty soon we are talking about real money....... I wonder what percentage of those that voted for Obama and Democrats in general could accurately define where "money" comes from?

Roy| 1.27.09 @ 7:10PM

Actually I think that phrase needs to be updated.

Old: A billion here, a billion there, pretty soon you're talking about real money.

New: A trillion here, a trillion there, pretty soon you're talking about FAKE money.

A government that spends like ours will wreck the currency given time.

Thom| 1.27.09 @ 7:11PM

I agree. This will wreck the savings of those living off fixed (government provided) retirement incomes when the inflation wave rolls in after this.

Deborah| 1.28.09 @ 4:28AM

I want to thank all of those Obama voters for electing an Illinois politician. Just look at Illinois with the corruption and the spending that has dragged that once great state (my state of birth) into a Michigan-like disaster. The only thing this stimulus stimulates is the FDR-era type perpetual Democrat Party.

Just one part of Illinois' problems is its state employees retirement program that I'm sure we'll be bailing out soon with federal dollars. You can read about that here: http://www.suntimes.com/business/savage/1395694,illinois-pensions-battle-retirem
ent-012409.article

CATO Institute has a great video showing what a mess we'll be in since all the stimulus stimulates is government, not the economy. Watch that here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mKE16Exh9k&eurl=http://hotair.com/archives/2009/
01/27/video-stimulating-government-not-the-economy/&feature=player_emb