Kevin Brady: “This past week was the 1-year anniversary of the so-called ``stimulus bill''--$862 billion--every dime of it borrowed…”

“This past week was the 1-year anniversary of the so-called ``stimulus bill''--$862 billion--every dime of it borrowed from the future and from our grandchildren. When that bill was rushed through the House with almost no time to study it, we were promised as a country that it would jump-start the economy, that it would stabilize unemployment and that it would restore consumer confidence. The fact of the matter is that we have lost 4 million jobs since the stimulus was passed. Unemployment has risen dramatically. It continues to hover around 10 percent. Only 6 percent of Americans in the latest poll believe that the stimulus actually created jobs in America. Most of them feel that that extra debt has actually hampered the economy. Six percent. By comparison, I should say 7 percent of Americans still believe Elvis is alive, so you sort of know what range this credibility has for the stimulus. The fact of the matter is that stimulus wasn't designed to create jobs. It was designed to bail out government workers at the State and local levels. The truth is, if you are a government worker or if you belong to a teachers' union, you probably got a pay raise from the stimulus. If you work in construction or in manufacturing, you probably got a pink slip. The fact of the matter is the government has grown since the stimulus has passed.”