Was the stimulus worth the cost?
By: Susan Ferrechio
Chief Congressional Correspondent
November 3, 2009
- The White House last week announced more than 640,000 jobs were created or saved by spending $159 billion in stimulus funds, but economists question the figure, saying it is impossible to calculate jobs that are saved. ABC News calculated each job cost taxpayers $160,000.
- More than half the jobs were in education, not the private sector, as promised by the Obama administration. Just 80,000 jobs were in construction.
- Nearly 690,000 cars were sold during Cash for Clunkers, but just 125,000 were purchased as a result of the program, leading analysts at Edmunds Auto Observer to calculate each car purchase cost taxpayers $24,000.
- According to Brookings Institution, 85 percent of recent home sales would have happened regardless of the first-time homebuyer tax credit, which means the cost of each $8,000 rebate for taxpayers is $43,000.
sferrechio@washingtonexaminer.com
More related stimulus stories:
Hopes for another stimulus run into questions about what's already been spent
White House moves to control waste and fraud
Fraudsters made the most of homebuyer tax credits
After a flurry of stimulus spending, questionable projects pile up
