Fox's Cameron still can't get his recovery act math right
SUMMARY: On Special Report, Carl Cameron uncritically reported, "The president wanted 75 percent of the package distributed in 18 months. Republicans say that's not going to happen with this package." Cameron then aired a clip of Rep. Jerry Lewis asserting, "Only 11 percent of the appropriations in this bill would be spent by the end of '09, 47 percent would be spent by fiscal year '10, 53 percent would not be spent until after October of 2-11." In doing so, Cameron misleadingly suggested that Lewis had been discussing the entire recovery bill, when Lewis was discussing only the appropriations provisions in the bill. According to the CBO, 74.2 percent of the total package would be spent within 19 months.
On the February 13 edition of Fox News' Special Report, discussing the House vote to pass the conference agreement for the economic recovery bill, chief political correspondent Carl Cameron uncritically reported, "The president wanted 75 percent of the package distributed in 18 months. Republicans say that's not going to happen with this package." Cameron then aired a clip of Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-CA) asserting, "Only 11 percent of the appropriations in this bill would be spent by the end of '09, 47 percent would be spent by fiscal year '10, 53 percent would not be spent until after October of 2-11." But in stating that President Obama "wanted 75 percent of the package distributed in 18 months" and then airing Lewis' comments, Cameron misleadingly suggested that Lewis had been discussing the entire recovery bill. In fact, as the clip indicated, Lewis was discussing only the rate of spending of the appropriations provisions in the bill, not including the provisions for direct spending or tax cuts. According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) score of the conference report, 74.2 percent of the total package would be spent within 19 months.
According to a February 13 letter from CBO director Douglas Elmendorf:
Combining both spending and revenue effects, CBO estimates that enacting the conference agreement for H.R. 1 would increase federal budget deficits by $185 billion over the remaining months of fiscal year 2009, by $399 billion in 2010, by $134 billion in 2011, and by $787 billion over the 2009-2019 period.
Lewis cited only the rate at which the "appropriations in the bill" would be spent [emphasis added]. Taking into account all provisions, according to the CBO, $185 billion of the $787 billion recovery bill would be spent by the end of fiscal year 2009, or 23.5 percent of the bill's total cost. Likewise, $584 billion ($185 billion for fiscal year 2009 plus $399 billion for fiscal year 2010), or 74.2 percent of the bill's total cost, would take effect within 19 months, through the end of fiscal year 2010. And $718 billion ($185 billion for fiscal year 2009 plus $399 billion for fiscal year 2010 plus $134 billion for fiscal year 2011), or 91.2 percent of the bill's total cost, would be spent by October 2011, through the end of fiscal year 2011.
As Media Matters for America previously documented, discussing previous versions of the recovery bill during the January 27 edition of Special Report, Cameron falsely claimed: "In both the House and Senate packages, more than half of the money is reserved for at least two years from now, and Republicans argue that that's simply not good enough." In fact, including both outlays and tax cuts, the CBO estimated that about 64 percent of H.R. 1 would be paid out within 19 months and about 86 percent by the end of fiscal year 2011.
From the February 13 edition of Fox News' Special Report with Bret Baier:
CAMERON: The Democratically controlled Congress didn't get the massive bill printed till the middle of the night.
HOUSE MINORITY LEADER JOHN BOEHNER (R-OH): What happened to the promise that we're gonna let the American people see what's in this bill for 48 hours? But nope, we don't have time to do that.
CAMERON: The president wanted 75 percent of the package distributed in 18 months. Republicans say that's not going to happen with this package.
LEWIS: Only 11 percent of the appropriations in this bill would be spent by the end of '09, 47 percent would be spent by fiscal year '10, 53 percent would not be spent until after October of 2-11.
CAMERON: The GOP zeroed in on billions in what they call non-simulative spending they think is best left out or put into normal, non-emergency legislation.
Cameron's wife worked for Bush
Carl Cameron always plays it like he's an objective reporter. Remember that footage from Michael Moore where Cameron is sucking up to Candidate Bush. He acknowledges that his wife was working on "W's" campaign as he lobs his softball questions. That should have booted him out of journalism for good, but Fixed News saw it an opportunity to promote him to "Senior W.H. Correspondent." Unfair and off-balanced as always.
Cammie, didn't you have some story blacked out around 9/11? That was you wasn't it? Is that when you started making up stories?
Well, I don't think he was a math major...
it's all summed up by saying it's nothing more than, 'lies and conspicuous deceit'.
from looking him up doesn't look like he graduated from anything
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carl_Cameron
Fox. Enough said
Hey, "BONER",
You lost the election....you do not get to dictate...you can either take what you can barter for or just sit on the sidelines and tell those people that you represent in Ohio, that you have the answers and they need to keep supporting Republicans and keep watching their jobs evaporate into thin air! You people are brain dead! People that keep repeating the same thing are considered insane!
I agree I agree I agree I agree I agree
yeagh, the stimulus is not up for discussion as evidenced by those who do have a vote decided to band up and not even read the document by taking the way out of voting against it to the last man standing in Cogress. And our local politico, a sheriff named reichart told us he voted against it bacause his supporters were 10 to one against the package and it would burden our descendants, he counted three generations, have to pay for it. So as a result, my grandchildren will also be looking for jobs.
They are acting like this is the first bill that they haven't gotten to read through before it passes. This happens all the time. The only time the Republicans make it an issue is when they are trying to pretend that this is an unusual circumstance.
I heard one Republican complaining that he hadn't gotten to read it all, and saying that the voters didn't vote for the staffers, so it doesn't matter if a Senator's staff read through the whole thing. But it does matter. For most bills, Senators and Congressmen don't read all the bills. It's bull.
Wolf, Hail to the sherriff..he voted against it because his supporters were 10-1 against it. He did his duty. My representative voted for it because the people here wanted it. Isn't this America at its finest? Both of my Senators, Casey and Specter voted for it. I'll consider Spector next time around. Never voted for the guy in the past.
What did your grandchildren plan to do live off of their inheritence? Cut the crap...your grandchildren will be paying for the Iraq war. Your great-grandchildren may have this burden. Thanks to the Republicans for the past 8 years.
the sheriff lied when he said 10-1. He made it up. He is supposed to represent all the people, not the republicans in Pierce County that squeaked him in last election.