Krauthammer Falsely Claims Stimulus Bill Has Provided No Benefit To The Economy

Krauthammer: $1 Trillion Stimulus “Won't Leave A Trace”. From the May 31 edition of Special Report:

SHANNON BREAM (Host): First let's start with Afghanistan, and Charles we talked about this a little bit last night: how much the cost of the war and the operations there will impact the decisions made on the ground. You know, everybody points to the defense spending and says, you know, that's something that Republicans are going to have to be willing to sacrifice on. How much will it impact what's going on?

KRAUTHAMMER: Look, this is an Administration that spent a trillion dollars on a stimulus which will not leave a trace, and now it's saying that in order to save a few billion, a fraction of a fraction of that, there are people in the White House who want to reduce the war effort.

Non-Partisan Studies Have Repeatedly Demonstrated That The Stimulus Lowered Unemployment And Boosted GDP

CBO: Stimulus Has Raised Employment By 1.2-3.3 Million. A May 2011 report by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that as of the first quarter of 2011, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) lowered the unemployment rate “by between 0.6 percentage points and 1.8 percentage points,” and "[i]ncreased the number of people employed by between 1.2 million and 3.3 million." [Congressional Budget Office, 5/11]

Private Analysts Estimate That Stimulus Increased Employment By 2.1 To 2.5 Million. In its fifth quarterly report on the Recovery Act, the White House Council of Economic Advisors provided the following chart showing that private forecasters estimate that, by the third quarter of 2010, the stimulus had increased employment by between 2.1 and 2.5 million:

[Council of Economic Advisors, 11/18/10]

CBO: Stimulus Raised Real GDP By 1.1-3.1 Percent. In its May 2011 report, CBO estimated that as of the first quarter 2011 the stimulus had increased real gross domestic product by “between 1.1 percent and 3.1 percent.” [Congressional Budget Office, 5/11]

Private Analysts Estimate That Stimulus Increased GDP By 2.1 To 3.5 Percent. In its fifth quarterly report on ARRA, the CEA estimated that the stimulus “has raised the level of GDP as of the third quarter of 2010, relative to what it otherwise would have been, by 2.7 percent.” CEA also provided a chart showing that private analysts estimate that the stimulus boosted GDP between 2.1 and 3.5 percent:

[Council of Economic Advisers, 11/18/10]