REALITY:
...the director of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), Peter Orszag, who told the Senate Finance Committee Tuesday that weighting tax relief to poorer families would increase the strength of the stimulus.
Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) also asked Orszag about the merits of issuing rebates of $400 to individuals and $800 to families, and bonuses to families of $400 per child. Orszag replied that the approach might have a greater impact as long as the bonuses are also available to families who do not pay income taxes.
WINGNUTS:
Sen. Judd Gregg (N.H.), the ranking Republican on the Budget Committee, was skeptical of Bush’s plan and warned that it could come at an enormous cost. “That’s a big number,” he said of package, which is equal to about 1 percent of the economy. “You better get something for it.”
Gregg said he has aired his concerns about the size of the package with Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). He also said that giving rebates to workers who pay only Social Security taxes, but not income taxes, is “mind-boggling.”
House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) said the prospect of sending rebates to people who do not pay income taxes would spark a “vigorous argument.” He stopped short, however, of calling it a deal-breaker.
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