Will GOP govs who opposed the stimulus plan on principle nevertheless take the money?

Last night South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford told Fox Noise's Sean Hannity: "We tried to make a stand as best we could to this administration against what we thought was a fundamentally stupid idea that would ultimately damage the economy, damage the capitalistic system that has been the envy of the world here in America for a very long time, and stack up a bunch of debt on top of debt on our kids and grandkids coming down the line." But he said his people are vetting the 1000-plus pages of the package now, and despite his opposition in principle he may accept stimulus money.

by Ken

Yesterday we reported on Rachel Maddow's Tuesday night interview with Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, in which she asked the governor, who had made no secret of his opposition to the president's economic recovery package, whether he would be accepting stimulus money for his state (answer: yes), and then why he thought this was OK given his objections to the package.

Instead of trying to concoct some a tortured conceptual justification (based on the fact that Minnesota is "the 46th-least-receiving state" in terms of what it gets back for every tax dollar it sends to Washington), the governor could have said, "Well, Rachel, as a practical matter, if the federal government is handing out money, I have an obligation to the tax-paying citzens of my state to make sure we get our fair share."

To the online wingnuts who don't understand why Rachel was even asking the question, here is a story about governors who are apparently preparing to "just say no" to recovery money, sent back by Howie with the note: "I bet this ends badly for them."

GOP governors consider turning down stimulus money

Associated Press - February 18, 2009 7:03 PM ET

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - A half-dozen Republican governors are considering turning down some money from the federal stimulus package.

None has actually rejected the available funds. But the governors of Texas, Mississippi, Louisiana, Alaska, South Carolina and Idaho have all questioned whether the $787 billion bill will even help the economy.

Idaho's governor says he's not interested in stimulus money that would expand programs and boost state costs in the future, after the federal dollars disappear. That worry is also cited by Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.

But opponents say the governors -- some of whom may be eyeing future White House bids -- would be putting conservative ideology ahead of the needs of constituents.

(I might add that my own inclination would have been to make it illegal for any resident of any CD or state whose congressman or senator voted against the stimulus package to benefit in any way from the disbursements. But I suppose that would be just petulant, not to mention counterproductive in terms of the goal of getting the economy back into some kind of functional mode.)


CHARLIE CRIST: VANGUARD OF A NEW REPUBLICANISM
OR A MAN ABOUT TO BE BOOTED OUT OF THE PARTY?

On the radio I caught Governor Crist, at his town hall yesterday in Democratic stronghold Fort Lauderdale, saying stuff like: "I campaigned for the other guy . . . but this is my president now, and I'm an American first," and saying how he supports the president's economic recovery plan and hopes it works. You would think that, especially in a time of economic crisis, these sentiments would be so commonplace as to be unworthy of comment. In our time and place, however, they're likely to get him drummed out of the Republican Party by Party Commissar Rush Limbaugh.

Howie sent back this story, an abbreviated AP version of a Miami Herald report, with the comment, "I guess Charlie Crist won't be one of the lunatic fringe GOP governors turning down the Stim bucks."

Gov. Charlie Crist defends support of stimulus package

By Beth Reinhard | The Miami Herald

Gov. Charlie Crist, who broke ranks with Republican leaders to support President Barack Obama's economic stimulus plan, received a standing ovation Wednesday from about 250 people at a town hall-style meeting in Fort Lauderdale.

He heard from a 50-year-old woman with an Ivy League education who is unemployed, a waterfront condominium owner interested in solar power and a taxpayer concerned about the largest government spending plan in U.S. history. Later, the governor met with West Palm Beach Mayor Lois Frankel, who handed him a wish list of city upgrades totaling more than $119 million.

The federal legislation amounts to $787 billion in federal spending and tax cuts. Florida could receive as much as $12.2 billion for healthcare, education and roads.
"I'm enormously grateful that it passed, and I know it's going to help our fellow Floridians in a substantial way," Crist said. "It could not have come at a better time."

In response to a question from Broward School Board Chairwoman Maureen Dinnen about school funding, Crist said Florida could receive $3.5 billion. One possible hitch, however, is that states that have cut school spending will have to get waivers from the government to get additional money.

"We've helped this administration a little bit get this package passed, and Florida voted for him, so our asking for a waiver, I think, will be looked on favorably by the administration," Crist said.

Many Republicans say the legislation was rushed through Congress with wasteful spending that will not create jobs. A few GOP governors are even considering refusing the money.

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