FDR Would Be Turning Over In His Grave If He Saw What's In the Stimulus Bill

Fri, 30 Jan 2009 17:19:52 +0000 – Last summer I wrote an article which made its way around my hometown of Cleveland, Ohio called "Is America Cleveland? ". As I drove through my city-- which was once ranked sixth in total U.S. population-- I saw schools, roads and public buildings falling apart. I wrote then that we must save America by putting our energy into infrastructure.

If the stimulus is not going directly into the pockets of American citizens on the brink of bankruptcy then the full force should be put into deshabbying America. All over the world we see gleaming cities, proud cities in Westernized countries. The Moscow subway is famed for its beauty. By contrast, the New York City subway looks like it has been abandoned by our government.

I believe in the stimulus bill but it must be focused on making America look great again and function as a society that does not look as if it were in decay.

The bill has some great things in it. As Leader Harry Reid says "it is not perfect" but we can do better. President Franklin Roosevelt, labor leaders George Meany and Walter Reuther would be turning over in their graves right now if they saw how some of that money is being spent. Let's revise the bill so that it works for the workerand works for America.