Dems to speed up spending in stimulus

Senate Democrats, in response to GOP criticism, announced
Thursday that they would speed up the spending component of the economic
stimulus plan.

Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said Democrats are
“sensitive” to points made Wednesday by Republicans, who cited a Jan. 15
Congressional Budget Office report that said only a small amount of the
stimulus funds would be spent in the plan’s early stages.

Durbin said Democrats discussed the idea during a
Thursday policy meeting and will coordinate accelerated spending with the White
House.

{mosads}“You’re going to hear from the administration that the
Senate version of this is going to have a faster spendout over a shorter period
of time. We’re sensitive to that,” Durbin said.

“You can’t spend it all immediately, but you’ve got to
really move it in fast if it’s going to have an impact,” he added. “And I think
you’re going to hear a comeback from the administration that (Republicans) are
exactly right.”

The move represents a shift from Wednesday, when Majority
Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Appropriations Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye
(D-Hawaii) assured Democrats that the CBO report was wrong.

According to the report, of the $355 billion in
discretionary funds requested by House Democrats, only $26 billion would reach
the economy this year, and only $136 billion by Oct 2010.

That prompted Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell
(R-Ky.) to issue a stern rebuke on Wednesday, telling reporters that the
stimulus package was “drifting” off course into a long-term spending plan.

“It’s our view that we need to try to craft this in such
a way that it is truly stimulative in nature, and not exacerbate the problem
that we all know exists,” McConnell said.

Reid said Thursday that he is not worried about
insufficient Republican support for the stimulus bill, saying that he wants to
give them time to determine their stance.

“Republicans are just trying to find out where they are,”
Reid said. “I don’t think there’s any problem at this stage.”

Durbin also said Democratic leaders are still weighing
whether to include in the stimulus a controversial component to rewrite
bankruptcy laws. The provision, which would allow bankruptcy judges to revise
mortgage terms, was strongly resisted by Republicans and defeated several times
last year.

Dropping the provision and agreeing to accelerate
spending may be worth doing to attract enough GOP support to bring in a strong
approval vote, but Durbin said final decisions have not been made.

“The goal is a strong, bipartisan package because I think
it sounds a more positive message to everybody that we can work together,”
Durbin said. “If it’s passed by 63 votes or 73 votes, people won’t remember it.
They will remember if we fail.”

One goal of Democrats hasn’t changed, Durbin said: A
deadline of finishing the bill by Presidents Day.

“We are determined — there will be no Presidents Day
break without it,” he said. “Everybody’s been put on notice.”