[tomder55]

The Obots think they did such a wonderful job with the "Cash for Clunkers " program that they plan on calling a new jobs program "Cash for Caulkers" . (you can't make this stuff up)
The idea is to take all those idle construction workers and give them a caulk gun and set them loose weatherizing homes. The government would split the cost with homeowners . At the job summit President Obama said it would get contractors working again and generate more private activity.It would also funnel funds into big box home supply businesses like Home Depot and Lowe's in return for their advertising the program.

Even the NY Slimes notes it shows the limitted ability of the government to do anything about unemployment .

Yet that relatively modest proposal underscores the limits of the government's ability to affect a jobless recovery with the highest unemployment rate in 26 years — and Mr. Obama acknowledged as much.

“I want to be clear: While I believe the government has a critical role in creating the conditions for economic growth, ultimately true economic recovery is only going to come from the private sector,”

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/04/us...aS17nEPI0IuqEw

When he asked business leaders what was holding back hiring he was told it was the government that was holding things up.
Fred P. Lampropoulos, founder and chief of Merit Medical Systems a medical device manufacturer in the Salt Lake City area said “there's such an aggressive legislative agenda that businesspeople don't really know what they ought to do.” That uncertainty, he added, “is really what's holding back the jobs.”

This is of course not the only proposal being floated in Washington. Other proposals include propping up unions with $400 billion .AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka has begun campaigning for a $400 billion handout to his union; that he calls a stimulus.

Madame Mimi wants to do TARP for jobs;a proposal the President is likely to support.
Obama is expected to endorse use of TARP leftovers for jobs program | StarTribune.com

TARP was passed with such broad and ambiguous language that no one can find any restrictions that prevent Congress from tapping into it for any pet projects they choose.

And of course the way they would pay for this is to tax transactions on Wall Street .

But if we are going to play Robin Hood ,then why not use the famous John Maynard Keynes solution ?Hire everyone to dig holes and later fill them in .Move everyone onto the government payroll. When will they learn that the only government solution to jobs is for government to get off the backs of businesses ? Someone remind me again... the bucket list stimulus created how many jobs ?

[Catsmine]

.the bucket list stimulus created how many jobs ?

Lots, providing you live in Congressional District 00. By the way, I'm running from that district... sign this election petition please.

[speechlesstx]

"Cash for Caulkers," are they really serious? It is a twofer for them, they get a few caulkers a little winter cash and they save the world from global warming at the same time.

Lampropoulos is right on, businesses are afraid to do anything until they find out how badly the Democrats are going to screw things up. If the Obamacare 'Cadillac plan' proposal alone passes, 2/3 of small business owners say they'll cut benefits and/or jobs.

And while they're doing bailouts for unions, caulkers and home improvement stores, they're ok with bailing out newspapers.

[speechlesstx]

Lawrence Summers made a plea for business owners to put country ahead of their own business interests:

"Summers urged the audience, which was heavily stocked with technology executives and trade association officials, to “think about what your institution should be called on to do, not in its own interest, but in the broader national interest.”

How does that work exactly?

[Catsmine]

How does that work exactly?

Give bankruptcy attorneys something to do?

[paraclete]

Ah, the sweet smell of a politician politicin