Dear Commons Community,

The news media is awash with articles and commentary on President Barack Obama’s address to Congress last night.  I thought it was pretty good.  Democrats and Republicans can find something positive in his proposals.  There’s a payroll tax cut, a small business tax cut, infrastructure spending, subsidies so states don’t have to lay off cops, firefighters and teachers, and a plan to use unemployment insurance to subsidize temporary work for the unemployed to get them back involved in the labor force.

I think David Brooks’ column entitled, Stimulus for Skeptics, today has a fine analysis of the President’s address:

“He’s put together a moderate set of stimulus ideas. His plan may not be enough to jolt prosperity, but it might maintain its current slow growth.

If he comes up with his own deficit proposal that pays for his programs with some serious entitlement reforms (and not merely with some boilerplate “let’s tax the rich” plan), then Republicans would be wise to work with him to make his growth ideas more effective. ..

The president clearly wants to give it a final shot. His tone on Thursday was feisty and will please Democrats. But the substance was heterodox and worth pursuing. In this moment of peril, the country needs an insurance policy against the double dip [recession].”

Tony