americans for prosperity

A conservative group called "Americans For Prosperity" has started a petition against the stimulus package that became so popular, it crashed their website in recent days. (The site has since gone back up.)

Does this group involve concerned Americans in all financial categories or does it simply reflect the "haves" striving to hold down the "have not’s?"

Last month nearly 600,000 Americans lost their jobs, bring us a whopping three-and-a-half million loses during this recession. A recession, some have yet to even acknowledge.

I have a hard time watching John McCain (and others) urging everyone to run online and sign a silly petition. I don’t remember him doing that when Bush blindly announced the first bailout plan, Sure we all squawked when the CEO’s arrived in private jets and even giggled when they were asked if they couldn’t have “jet pooled” But I don’t remember any call for Americans to sign a petition!

And there were plenty of talks about how Bush’s invasion has set our Country into a spiral of debt. If ever there had been a need for Americans to ban together, it was then. But again, no petition was circulated and promoted by members of Congress!
In a time where Congress needs to come together, they seem bent on staying apart. One could argue they are simply setting the stage for their next election. On the other side, one could argue they are truly standing by what they think is right. But a petition, does anyone seriously believe that would have any impact?

And where was this group during the first bailout? Oh that’s right; it was mainly a bailout for the rich. So, maybe, just maybe if people promoting this petition were to lose one of their 7 (or was it 9) homes, they might be able to understand the need the average American. Remember, the idea here is to stimulate the economy which will in turn, help us all.

ddressed to Senators, the petition reads:

On behalf of the members of Americans for Prosperity, I am writing to urge you to vote against the so-called American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Congress should not enact an expensive spending bill under the pretense of stimulus or recovery. No matter which amendments pass, the fundamental approach of dramatically increasing federal debt and spending is a mistake. We therefore urge you to vote NO and will rate a vote against the so-called stimulus as a Key Vote for Prosperity in our Congressional ratings.

As I write this letter, more than 200,000 Americans have signed a petition on our web site, NoStimulus.com, and thousands more will likely sign it before you read this letter. They represent a growing majority of the American public who agree with the petition text:

"Congress should not enact an expensive spending bill under the pretense of stimulus or recovery. We cannot spend our way to prosperity, and such an expansion of the federal government will put a crushing burden on taxpayers in the long-term."

Central planning and bigger government cannot solve our problems. Excessive borrowing to fund consumption was a major cause of our current economic crisis. The first rule of holes is to stop digging, and more than $1 trillion of additional borrow-and-spend big government will only throw more good money after bad. Instead of trying to pick winners and losers from Washington, Congress should cut spending, strip down burdensome regulations and allow individuals and free enterprise to flourish.

We therefore urge you to vote no on the stimulus, regardless of which amendments pass and regardless of any individual provisions that may look attractive.

Sincerely,

Tim Phillips
President
Americans for Prosperity

Here's some more news about their plans:

Americans for Prosperity, small government advocacy group, has circulated a “No Stimulus Plan” petition. It is a document that has become increasingly popular online.

The petition’s popularity rose the day after President Obama took to the airwaves to advocate for it, and on the day that the Senate is expected to approve their version of the economic stimulus plan--set to cost some $838 billion.

In response, Americans for Prosperity launched a new website for the petition called Nostimulus.com, which allows those who oppose the stimulus measure--and, according to recent polls, that is about 43 percent of all Americans--to voice their concerns and objections.

The petition reads that “Congress should not enact an expensive spending bill under the pretense of stimulus or recovery. We cannot spend our way to prosperity, and such an expansion of the federal government will put a crushing burden on taxpayers in the long-term.”

Americans for Prosperity’s objections to the plan include: claims that “only 3.6% of the scheme’s $825 billion price tag would actually go to real, practical infrastructure projects--roads and bridges; that the Congressional Budget Office has said the plan would actually hurt the economy; and last, that the plan would represent “the first steps towards the socialization and government-mandated rationing of health care.”

It is indeed true that the stimulus plan reads more like a wish list of every leftist in hte country, rather than an actually well crafted stimulus for the economy.

Related Story:No Stimulus Petition