[Perhaps, just like they fixed the Paulsen plan. Once again, they are handed leverage by the fact that the administration wants it quickly and because it is overestimating the number of Republican votes. And perhaps, having done it once recently and liked how it felt, Congressional Dems are growing some boldness.]
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/785be1d0-dede-11dd-9464-000077b07658.html
January 10/11 (Sat/Sun edition) Financial Times
Edward Luce
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The president-elect, who has come under fire from the left in the past few days for proposing that up to 40 per cent of the stimulus should be via tax cuts, said that he would be prepared to "hone and refine" the package to take account of "new ideas".
<snip>
Leading Democrats joined economists this week to argue that the $775bn (E576bn, £511bn) two-year fiscal stimulus was too small to jump-start the economy and too skewed towards measures to win Republican backing, such as tax incentives for businesses.
Yesterday's jobless figures strengthened those such as Harry Reid, the Senate Democratic majority leader, and Nancy Pelosi, the House speaker, in arguing that the stimulus must include more spending on job creation and infrastructure projects.
<snip>
Mr Obama's plea for urgency followed Ms Pelosi's warning that she would deny Congress its recess if a bill was not passed by the traditional President's Day break on February 13.
It also followed an unexpectedly sharp groundswell of criticism of the package by Democrats in the past few days, many of whom believe it is too small to halt the recession.
Democratic lawmakers put their message across to Lawrence Summers, who will be Mr Obama's senior economic adviser in the White House, at meetings yesterday and on Thursday. Some argued the plans relied too much on old-fashioned "trickle-down economics". Mr Summers reportedly said: "Message received loud and clear."
Some Democrats even criticised the middle-class tax cuts in Mr Obama's plan, which would give $500 to individuals and $1,000 to families, in what was an important election pledge.
They argued that families were likelier to save than to spend the small windfall. "I just don't think it works," said Kent Conrad, chairman of the influential Senate budget committee.
"I don't think that's going to give much lift to the economy, as well-intended as it is."
<end excerpts>