Chuck Schumer: “We are trying to deal with an economic crisis that grows worse day by day, similar to an economic 9/11 that ought to be…”

“We are trying to deal with an economic crisis that grows worse day by day, similar to an economic 9/11 that ought to be bringing us together. The economy is hurtling southward. People are laid off every second and every minute. You get on the phone and talk to someone you know--I spoke to a friend of mine. Her sister had been laid off. I went to a local Italian restaurant. The waiter's wife had been laid off. The woman who cuts my hair, her husband has been laid off. We are hemorrhaging jobs. The middle class is losing dollars. The country could edge over into a recessionary spiral downward that actually turns into deflation, which could, God forbid, turn into a depression. Yet while President Obama shows leadership, the other side is still adamantly sticking to policies that do not work. They are arguing for marginal rate cuts and choosing to ignore that the very purpose of a stimulus package is to spend money, to help fill the void left by a dramatic reduction in consumer and business spending.”