A majority of Americans believe the $787 billion stimulus package signed into law by President Obama in February is not helping the economy, according to a poll commissioned by USA Today.
In the survey, published today, 33 percent of the adults said they believe the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is having no effect on the economy; an additional 24 percent said they believe the package is making the economy worse.
Also, 54 percent of the respondents said they believe the economy will still be in a recession a year from now.
Republicans on Monday seized on the results.
"This is a wake-up call for the administration." House Minority Whip Eric Cantor, R-Va, told USA Today. "People see the stimulus hasn't worked, and now you want to lay on over $1 trillion in a health care plan."
The release of the stimulus package has coincided with a soaring national unemployment rate, which reached 9.7 percent in July, up from 8.9 percent in February.
However, many economists say that without the stimulus package, the unemployment rate would be even higher.
In early June, the Obama administration said the package had created 150,000 jobs, according to Time.
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