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Is a second stimulus check up ahead?

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With unemployment rising and the signs of slowdown all around, is a second tax rebate or second stimulus check from Congress up ahead?

The U.S. economy continues to slow. More than 800,000 jobs have been lost since the slowdown began about a year ago, and many economists say the lay-offs are likely to continue or even increase.

Meanwhile, the world's major industrialized nations are striving to stabilize the global financial system and end a credit crunch that could further damage economies around the world.

Well, the answer to the question about a second stimulus check may very well rest on the answer to this one: Who are you voting for on Election Day, November 4?

Key factor: 2008 Election

Congressional Democrats, led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California, have vowed to push for a second stimulus package totaling up to $150 billion to help jump-start the anemic U.S. economy, The San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Pelosi and other Congressional Democratic leaders say a second tax rebate is needed to prevent the U.S. economy from falling into a deeper recession. The stimulus package is likely to include money for infrastructure projects, aid to cash-strapped states, an extension of unemployment benefits and another round of tax rebates or tax cuts to boost consumer spending.

Further, here's why your vote on November 4 could very well determine whether the package is approved or not: President Bush and other Republicans in Congress are against a second stimulus package, CQ.com reported. The Democrats do not have a enough votes to override a Bush veto with a required two-thirds vote by both the House and Senate in a lame-duck session of Congress held before the new U.S. president is inaugurated and new Congress convenes in January 2009.

"What they [the Democrats] have presented before couldn't pass the Congress itself, and it was not something that we thought would actually stimulate the economy and have an immediate impact," White House press secretary Dana Perino told CQ.com.

In the current Congress, the Democrats hold a 233-198 majority in the House. The Senate is knotted at 49-49, with 2 Independents.

If President Bush vetoed a second stimulus package, which is likely, the Democrats would need to secure 288 yes votes in the House, and 67 in the Senate to override the veto. There's almost no chance that the Democrats could secure enough Republican votes to override the presidential veto.

Further, if U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, is elected president, he too, would probably veto a second stimulus package, although he might favor a different one: a package that's tilted heavily toward more tax cuts for small businesses, corporations, and oil and energy companies.

If U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, is elected president, he'd probably sign a second stimulus package.

Political / Economic Analysis: So if you feel a second rebate check and/or income tax cut would help the economy, vote for Democrats for Congress and Barack Obama for president.

Conversely, if you feel a second rebate check isn't needed, or that it won't help the economy, or that the money would be better spent on tax cuts for businesses, or that it isn't the role of government to help, vote for Republicans for Congress and John McCain for president.

Keeping in mind that Congress is not likely to approve a policy the public does not support, it makes sense to find out what our readers think.

In your view, should Congress pass and the president sign a second stimulus check?

a) Yes.

b) No.

c) Not sure.

d) None of the above / something else.

Let us know what you think.

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)

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Last updated: July 06, 2009: 09:24 PM

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