The Stimulus WorkedAs Far As It Went  One of my biggest gripes
about the administration is the fact that they have a terrible,
hubristic habit of taking premature victory laps. They aren’t
alone — the Democratic congress and the Republicans do the same
thing. I suppose they worry about not being allowed to take
credit at the later date if things don’t work out so they want
to insure they get a celebration for their hard work.  One of
the earliest examples was the stimulus which has, it turns out,
been very successful on its own terms, but falls short of the
unfortunate high bar the administration set for it when it
extolled it as the (first of many) “greatest” pieces of
legislation passed in the last half century. Kevin Drum writes:
According to CBO reports, the stimulus has created 3.5 million
jobs and kept unemployment about 1 to 2 percent lower than it
otherwise would have been, and apparently it’s accomplished this
efficiently and with minimal waste. It’s a testament to what
happens when you take good po