To the editor:

In a recent letter (Feb. 16), Thomas Koch equates the Obama/Pelosi spending package with the Bush tax cuts of 2003. Whereas, history will judge the effectiveness of the recently passed legislation, it is very clear those tax cuts in 2003 were an overwhelming success!

Tax revenue increased 35 percent (according to the Congressional Budget Office) from 2003 to 2006!

Don’t get me wrong; the blame for our current deficit falls squarely on President George W. Bush and the Republicans and Democrats in Congress. If they could have reined in spending, we would be in much better shape than we are in. I thought it was telling how Koch worded his letter stating, “The Bush tax cuts of 2003 gave $56 billion to …” The money is ours, not the government’s! The Bush tax cuts didn’t give anything, but we got to keep more of what we earned.

The problem most people have with this recently passed legislation is that there is so much spending that has nothing to do with stimulating the economy (digital converters, high-speed rail from L.A. to Vegas, etc.) and so little that actually stimulates the economy ($400/person) and if you really wanted to stimulate things you would give it all at once and not in $13 installments.

I think we would have been better off sending a check for $10,000 to everyone (and it probably would have been cheaper, too).

Craig Campbell,
Lawrence