Economic Stimulus Plan Won't Be a Quick Fix

The final touches are being put on the economic stimulus plan of 2009 that is being built to try to boost our economy and restore growth and spending power to the consumer. Most consumers can expect to see some tax breaks from the stimulus plan, but quite a bit of the money will also be going to investments in things such as infrastructure and alternative energy. I believe investing in these things is important and the economic stimulus plan as a whole is something that is needed, but I also know that government must also cut its budget deficit in a big way and be more fiscally responsible. These are once in a lifetime economic conditions so an economic stimulus plan makes sense, but cuts will definitely have to be made somewhere down the line.

The final bill that is being pushed through the Senate is a $838 billion stimulus plan that the President says will cost $223,000 per job created. That certainly is a huge amount to spend to create jobs, but in the end the hope is that the amount will be repaid in full by a productive American worker. Exactly how the stimulus package that President Obama and congressional democrats crafted will work will take some time to pan out. I think that is the single most important thing for the American people to realize, this economic stimulus package is no quick fix.

The truth is for an economy bleeding jobs the way this economy is, and an economy that is seeing more and more foreclosures by the month, there really is no quick fix. Consumer confidence is the lowest it has ever been, which certainly doesn't bode well for the first couple quarters of 2009 and retail sales.

This economic stimulus is a huge plan that is an attempt at creating jobs over time, but most of the investments being made in this stimulus are in jobs that will take some time to be created and the economic benefits won't be immediate. The bottom line for American consumers as well as investors to remember is that this economic stimulus won't fix a badly broken economy for quite some time if it ever does. I certainly agree that something must be done and I hope that the stimulus helps boost the long-term growth of the United States, but I fear some have expectations that are simply too high. Keep your expectations more realistic and continue saving money as much as possible because the worst of the economic times has not hit us yet.