Americans in 'Winter of Our Hardship'

(NEWSER) - Even the stimulus couldn’t rouse Republicans “into any human feeling,” writes Derrick Jackson of the Boston Globe. “With the collective livelihood of America at stake,” Republicans opted for full-blown obstinacy, crying about the deficit while conveniently forgetting that their president had turned a $128 billion surplus into a $1.2 trillion deficit. It’s a dumb strategy, one that’s only “extending Obama’s honeymoon.” More»

Prez still didn't get much GOP support

(NEWSER) - President Obama promised a new spirit of cooperation in Washington, and in his relationship with Congress, he did his best to deliver, the Wall Street Journal reports. Obama left congressional leaders wide leeway in crafting the stimulus bill and stayed in close touch with members. Joe Biden stayed on pivotal senators like Susan Collins, calling her back repeatedly in rural Maine. More»

President's hunger for bipartisan support led to disaster: Krugman

(NEWSER) - Even if the Obama stimulus package had been enacted in its original $800 billion form, writes Paul Krugman, it wouldn't have plugged the hole in the American economy. Yet the "centrists" who cut it down have taken out some of its best provisions, like aid for state governments, while leaving its most egregious items in. For the New York Times columnist, the final bill may produce "substantially more suffering"—and the president is to blame. More»

(AP) - President Barack Obama and Senate Republicans bickered today over his historically huge economic recovery plan after states and schools lost tens of billions of dollars in a late-night bargain to save it, the AP reports. "We can't afford to make perfect the enemy of the absolutely necessary," Obama said. The Senate convened a rare Saturday session to debate a compromise forged between GOP moderates and the White House. More»

As Washington squabbles, citizens lose faith: Noonan

(NEWSER) - Americans are indulging in a strange disjunction between real life and the fate of the nation, Peggy Noonan writes for the Wall Street Journal: "Your long-term thoughts are pessimistic, and yet you're cheerful in the day to day." But as the recession gets worse and the threat of terrorism fails to abate, Washington offers little solace. Americans "know huge and historic challenges are here, but they're not confident they can or will be met." More»