> Economic Preview - July 13, 2009

If at first you and $787 billion don’t succeed, try, try again. Try to come back and ask for more money that is. Amidst what has become a growing chorus of calls for another stimulus package, one can be excused for wondering what about the first $787 billion stimulus package signed into law in February. The seemingly obvious answer is that it just isn’t working, but the reality is that the 1,000-plus page bill was a stimulus plan in name only, with much of the spending called for in the bill not occurring until 2010 and beyond. The reality is also that another “stimulus” package won’t cure what ails the economy, including a still-shaky banking system and a painful but overdue deleveraging in the household sector. Whether that reality will be enough to derail more “stimulus” spending, however, will remain to be seen.

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