Obama prepares to spend additional $300 billion

In an effort to revive the struggling economy, President Obama is set to propose $300 billion in cuts and new spending to put Americans back to work. However, aside from previously negotiated details, the plan itself is still shrouded in mystery. 

WASHINGTON, D.C. (Catholic Online) - The public is upset. New polls suggest that this isn't a good time to be a politician. Obama, Congress, and even the Tea Party have reached new lows in political approval. In one poll, the majority of responders indicated they would vote out every member of Congress if they could. 

Everyone agrees, that unemployment is a significant problem, but agreeing on how to resolve the issue is the part that nobody seems to agree on. Obama's plan is to spend more money to put people to work, although the American people haven't seen a plan yet--that's a cliffhanger until Thursday.

Still the price tag has been unveiled, possibly to prevent sticker-shock. Even the President's supporters agree that it's going to be tough to sell anything with such a price tag on it, especially given the apparent fondness of the current administration for spending.

Those close to the President have already spoken up about some of the details of his speech. Among the proposals are an extension of unemployment benefits, the redirection of tax dollars into projects that should create some jobs in infrastructure development, and the extension of some popular current tax cuts, including the extension of a payroll tax cut that is serving as a form of economic stimulus.

There may be a program announced that incentivizes businesses to hire the unemployed. And some have speculated that the President will go so far as to propose a host of public works projects. All of this will likely have to be paid for with new spending, tax increases, or painful cuts elsewhere.

The criticism writes itself. Aside from the obvious expense, the reality is that most of the jobs likely to be created by such an initiative would be temporary, and would only provide short-term relief for the chronic, structural unemployment developing in the country.

Congressional Republicans have said they are willing to work with the President on a jobs initiative, but given the acrimonious nature of earlier debates and the upcoming high-stakes 2012 elections, it is going to be a difficult sell for Obama, even under the best circumstances.

Meanwhile, the U.S. unemployment rate remains at 9.1 percent  and the deficit grows.

Other political developments slated for the week include the first meeting of a bipartisan committee that is tasked with making 1.2 trillion in deficit cuts over the next decade. Both sides will have to agree to significant compromises to prevent automatic cuts to defense and entitlement spending. 

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On Tuesday, Massachusetts Governor, Mitt Romney also proposed his job creation plan for the country, a plan that consisted largely of tax cuts designed to entice employers to hire and to keep corporate money in the U.S.  Most are already dismissing the plan as rhetoric, citing Massachusetts state's lack of job creation under Romney's administration.

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