Wall Street Journal, “White House Under Fire for Unspent Infrastructure Cash“: “The Obama administration has paid out less than a third of the nearly $230 billion allocated to big infrastructure projects in the economic-stimulus program.”

Michael Barone, The Examiner, “Big government forgets how to build big projects,” comparing the construction of the Pentagon in WWII to a little bridge being rebuilt over an inlet on the Potomac. Both, 18 months: “Big government has become a big, waddling, sluggish beast, ever ready to boss you around, but not able to perform useful functions at anything but a plodding pace. It needs to be slimmed down and streamlined, so it can get useful things done fast.”

Washington Post editorial, “Stimulus programs hobbled by regulations“: “[Lawmakers] could carefully exempt projects in any future stimulus from burdensome regulatory requirements, even if those requirements make more sense in calmer times.” Even? It’s also possible they don’t make sense at any time.

Harold Meyerson, Washington Post, “Rebuilding the Democratic brand with jobs, “If the Democrats focused on boosting manufacturing, with a corollary upgrade to our infrastructure, they’d tap into the only area in which the public wants a more activist government.” Trouble is, an activist government tends to make manufacturing less competitive globally.

White House blog, “Obama Administration Officials Continue to Visit State Fairs,” announcing Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood’s attendance at the Illinois State Fair Friday, Aug. 20, “As part of the Illinois State Fair ‘Futures for Kids Day,’ Secretary LaHood will join law enforcement and traffic safety advocates for the 2010 kickoff of Operation Teen Safe Driving Illinois. Secretary Lahood will tour agricultural exhibits, visit the Illinois State Police Tent, and meet with high school students who have been helping to spread the word about the dangers of distracted driving.” We begrudge no one a trip to the state fair.

Wichita Eagle, “Grant may pay for bike lanes downtown“: “A federal grant that the city is poised to apply for could add miles of bike paths to the downtown area and convert four one-way streets downtown to two-way streets. Under the proposed grant application, the city would pay $10.5 million to leverage $24.5 million in federal money that is part of the TIGER II program.” What federal hand or eye could fund this fearful symmetry?

CNSNews.com, “White House Directive: Erect Signs at All Stimulus Projects as ‘Symbol of President Obama’s Commitment to American People’“: “The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration also issued guidance to ARRA [stimulus] recipients encouraging but not requiring that signs be posted at job sites.”

CBC News, “Feds flexible on stimulus funding deadline“: “The [Canadian] federal government is giving municipalities a bit of wiggle room on its deadline to receive infrastructure stimulus funding. The $4-billion federal program provides cash to shovel-ready provincial and municipal projects — provided they can be completed before March 31, 2011.”

President Obama gave remarks about the economy Friday at a manufacturing company in North Carolina. As The New York Times reports:

To highlight his economic agenda, he flew to Charlotte to visit Celgard, a firm that produces material for lithium batteries and has received $49 million from the stimulus program. The company is expanding its Charlotte plant and building a new facility in nearby Concord. Mr. Obama said the stimulus money was helping Celgard create 300 new jobs directly and as many as 1,000 new jobs for suppliers and contractors. 

It’s great the President chooses to highlight manufacturing. At the same time, manufacturers can remind him that the Administration is rolling an avalanche of regulations down upon the economy, burying the very industries he’s promoting.

Lithium batteries represent a good example. As previously noted, in January the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration [PHMSA]  issued a notice of proposed rulemaking [NPRM] to modify regulations that govern the shipping of lithium batteries and cells as air freight. The proposed regs require the batteries and battery-containing products be shipped as hazardous materials,  imposing unnecessary, anti-competitive and in many cases prohibitively expensive handling and packaging requirements.

Lithium-ion batteries are already hugely important in portable electronics and consumer goods, where just-in-time manufacturing and supply chain efficiencies are critical. The National Association of Manufacturers also discussed the impact of the proposed regulations on the electric vehicle industry in the NAM’s formal comments:

As the federal government encourages greater energy independence, the development of a lithium ion battery industry in the United States is more critical than ever. The PHMSA NPRM is totally inconsistent with national policy goals because the rule will make it more difficult and more expensive to ship large advanced batteries that are used for electric and hybrid vehicles and domestic energy exploration. Achieving a level playing field in the United States that keeps transportation services efficient and costs competitive is critical to the success of these larger policies intended to promote energy independence.

These considerations are just as important to the creation of jobs as the stimulus funding trumpeted by the President Friday in North Carolina.

The Wall Street Journal ran a story today that casts further doubt on the crafting of the U.S. stimulus bill enacted in February (and which the NAM supported), “China’s GDP Rise Prompts a Debate.”

BEIJING — China’s government said its economy’s rebound remains uneven and unstable, even as a surge in growth has prompted economists to debate whether officials need to start cooling things down.

The government’s eight-month-old stimulus program helped boost China’s gross domestic product growth to 7.9% in the second quarter, the National Bureau of Statistics reported Thursday, up from 6.1% in the first quarter.

But Li Xiaochao, a spokesman for the bureau, said the effects of the upturn haven’t been felt by all parts of the economy. “Most people feel there has already been a recovery, but it’s uneven and there …

The rest is behind a subscription wall. But the teaser raises an obvious question: Why was the Chinese stimulus more successful in stimulating the economy than the U.S. package? USA Today’s headline from November provides a clue: “China’s economic stimulus plan targets its infrastructure.”

The Australians are certainly delighted with what the Chinese have been able to accomplish, although this Daily Australian headline is optimistic, “China’s growth of 7.9pc to rescue world and local economies.” Still…

HSBC China chief economist Qu Hongbin said the figures from China, the world’s second-biggest economy, confirmed the bank’s expectation of “a V-shaped recovery” starting in the June quarter. HSBC yesterday raised its full-year GDP growth forecast to 8.1 per cent, rising to 9.5 per cent next year.

Mr Qu said the stimulus-led recovery could be sustained by long-term spending on infrastructure, which would require massive amounts of raw materials, such as steel and cement.

“Construction work on most of these infrastructure projects, once started, will typically last two to three years,” he said. “Therefore, as long as there are enough projects in the pipeline, the infrastructure investment is likely to be more sustainable than many expect.”

Lessons to be learned, especially as Congress considers a new highway bill.

With President Obama in Michigan today, let’s also take a look at editorials in the Detroit newspapers:

Detroit News, “Obama’s stimulus plan is not working“:

Instead of more spending, Obama and Congress should turn to the only proven stimulus strategy: cutting taxes. Corporate and individual tax rates should be cut substantially, at all income levels, and the administration should signal that there will be no new taxes for anyone. Taxpayers allowed to keep more of their own money would spread it around the economy and trigger a broad and sustainable rebound.

The president should signal that his No. 1 priority is reviving the economy and set aside those pieces of his agenda — carbon cap-and-trade and health care reform specifically — that carry the serious risk of killing jobs and raising the costs of goods and services.

Detroit Free Press, “Above all, Mr. President, Michigan needs promise of jobs“:

So President Barack Obama makes his first return to Michigan since the 2008 election and plans to put on a big push for community colleges and the kind of training they offer.

Not a bad idea on its face. But Michigan has emphasized job retraining for months, if not years now — and yet people keep losing their jobs, even in supposedly hot fields such as health care.

Seems that Obama might do better to focus on encouraging folks here about how his policies — the stimulus package, in particular — are going to actually put people back to work.

This skepticism from Michigan provides political context, too, helping to explain the low-key, no-news reception the White House gave the union leaders yesterday. (See “Card Check: What a Disappointing Meeting for Labor.”) Perhaps President realized that a exuberant, arms-raised photo-op with the heads of the SEIU or the AFL-CIO would signal to the public that creating jobs was not an Administration priority — satisfying a political constituency was. So the union bosses were kept out of the public eye.

It looks like the White House asked for some back-up too. House Majority Leader Hoyer’s office just released a statement, “Economic Recovery on Track”:

Even before passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, President Obama cautioned Americans that economic recovery would take time. Since passage of the Recovery Act, the pace of job loss has eased substantially and the economy is no longer in a freefall. While there is still significant work to be done to restore our economy and bring relief to American families, economic experts agree that the recovery is working as designed and on track to meet its goals. Nearly a quarter of the recovery funds have been obligated in under a quarter of the days allotted.

On track…

(Hat tip for the Detroit editorials: Glenn Reynolds)

Vice President Biden is on the road tomorrow, stimulating support for the stimulus.

Troy, New York: “Vice President Joe Biden is scheduled to be at Shenendehowa High School Thursday at 1:15 p.m. to talk about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, according to an e-mail sent to state Sen. Roy McDonald’s office Tuesday.”

Cincinnati, Ohio: “A limited number of tickets are available for Vice President Joe Biden’s visit to Cincinnati on Thursday to see how $1.6 million in federal stimulus money will be put to work at a Northside development project…[snip]Biden will arrive at Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky International Airport Thursday morning and travel by motorcade to Northside, where he will see the Factory Square development at the former American Can Co. factory.”

Reading the Post today, you could see where the White House would want to reinforce the message that the stimulus is working.

• “Power of Stimulus Slow to Take Hold“: “Five months after Congress approved a massive package of spending and tax cuts aimed at reviving an ailing economy, the jobless rate is still climbing and the White House is scrambling to reassure an anxious public that President Obama’s prescription for economic recovery is on the right track.”
• Dan Balz, “Obama Stands to Be Judged on Economic Recovery“: “Nothing may be more important to public assessments of President Obama’s leadership than the state of the economy, and at this point there are political warning lights flashing. “
• Michael Gerson, “Obama’s Iceberg“: “The stimulus package hasn’t been very stimulating — as many economists predicted. Pouring money into the economy through a thirsty sponge of federal programs — the preferred method of Congress — is slow and inefficient. In retrospect, all of the stimulus funds should have been given to individuals directly from the tap.”

Many manufacturers and NAM member companies have been disappointed by the slow and weak impact the stimulus measure — which the NAM supported — has had on the economy. (See this post.) The goal was both immediate stimulus (a la shovel-ready) AND dollars spent on investments that would strengthen U.S. competitiveness, especially infrastructure.

Now MSNBC provides some numbers that affirm the manufacturers’ dissatisfaction:

Of the $478 billion in direct spending (the rest is mostly tax cuts), the Congressional Budget Office figures only about $150 billion will be available this year.

Of that money, some agencies have done at lot better than others at writing checks. The Social Security Administration — which knows a thing or two about writing checks — has spent all $13 billion of its stimulus budget for this year. About three-quarters of the $21.5 billion allocated to Health and Human Services has been spent. And the Agriculture Department has processed about two-thirds of the $3.2 billion it has available this year.

But it seems that other agencies are having a harder time getting the money out the door. As of mid-June, for example, spending by the Transportation Deptartment for so-called “shovel ready” projects represented barely 2 percent of available funds. The EPA has barely touched its $4.4 billion in stimulus spending. Same for the Defense Department.

So spending with minimal stimulus and little if anything to enhance U.S. competitiveness. Sure. Bring on Stimulus II!

(Hat tip: Jonah Goldberg, who writes today on the primacy of pork.)

Yesterday President Barack Obama announced at a Cabinet meeting that he plans to accelerate spending for the $787 billion stimulus plan to create or save 600,000 jobs over the next 100 days. However, it is a bit concerning the President has also previously expressed support for the jobs-killing Employee Free Choice Act that will destroy 600,000 jobs in the first year after enactment. One step forward, one step back.

A recent academic study by Dr. Layne-Ferrar shows that if union leaders’ expectations of increasing union membership by 1.5 million members in the year after EFCA passage are correct, 600,000 jobs will be lost.

It makes no sense that at the same that Congress and the Administration express a commitment to save and create jobs, they’ll pledge support for a bill that will kill just as many.

UPDATE (12:20 p.m.): More from The Truth About EFCA blog, “Card Check Cost: $1.75 Billion (or More!)“

President Obama today heads to the Department of Transportation to draw attention to the stimulative spending on infrastructure. From AP, “Stimulus tallies 2,000 transportation projects“:

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama says two rare phrases describe how his administration is spending billions in stimulus money on roads: “ahead of schedule” and “under budget.”

Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood planned Monday to highlight the administration’s 2,000th project funded through the $48.1 billion allocated for transportation infrastructure in the stimulus package. Administration aides note the six-weeks-old law is already producing jobs nationwide, including the day’s highlighted project in hard-hit Kalamazoo County, Mich.

That $68 million project planned to widen an interchange from four lanes to six along Interstate 94 in Portage, Mich.

In education, borrowing from little Petey Jr. to pay Paul. Washington Post, “Schools’ ‘Money Is Falling Off the Truck’“:

Educators across the country are counting on a federal stimulus windfall to prevent teacher layoffs and improve schools. But while Washington is giving, some state and local governments are taking away.

After hearing that an initial batch of $11.8 million in federal funds would soon arrive in Loudoun County, supervisors slashed $7.3 million from the schools budget. They also made clear that if more federal recovery money flows to schools, schools might be asked to give back an equal amount of county dollars.

The Obama administration has heralded the stimulus — which funnels an unprecedented $100 billion into public schools, universities and early childhood programs — as a historic opportunity to reform education. But the budget shifts in Loudoun offer a case study of a phenomenon that worries educators nationwide. When the math is done, will the fiscal jolt from Washington be enough to transform classrooms?

No. The answer to that question is, “No.”

And a Department of Interior news release, “Secretary Salazar Announces Department of Interior Economic Stimulus Projects: USGS Investments Underscore Commitment to ‘Best Science‘:

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today announced the Department of the Interior’s first projects under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 – $140 million that will fund 308 U.S. Geological Survey projects across the 50 states. The USGS, the leading science research bureau in the federal government, supports the science needs of all the other bureaus of the Department of the Interior and other departments of the U.S. government. The USGS will play a critical role in addressing the nation’s energy and climate change challenges.

Overall, the Department of the Interior will manage $3.0 billion in investments as part of the recovery plan signed by the President to jumpstart our economy, create or save jobs, and put a down payment on addressing long-neglected challenges so our country can thrive in the 21st Century.

“These USGS projects not only stimulate job creation and preservation, but they stimulate the scientific research that must underpin the decisions we make on behalf of the American people as the stewards of the nation’s natural resources,” Secretary Salazar said in a teleconference today. “As America’s leading earth science agency, USGS is central to helping us meet the imperatives of the nation’s energy and climate change challenges.”

Worthy projects, seems like: $15 million to monitor volcanoes, another $15 million for improved stream monitoring, but stimulus? A half-million to digitize bird-banding records seems like it won’t do anything to jump start the economy.

Washington Post, “In Midwest, Obama Sings Praises of Stimulus Plan“:

EAST PEORIA, Ill., Feb. 12 — President Obama on Thursday touted the $789 billion economic stimulus package nearing congressional approval, telling workers at a huge manufacturing plant here that “a new wave of innovation, activity and construction will be unleashed all across America” once the plan is enacted.

The Post’s story is built around the President’s appearance at the Caterpillar plant in Peoria, Ill. Caterpillar and its top executive, Jim Owens, are advocates of expanded trade opportunities. So…

While Owens supports the stimulus plan, he is part of a group of manufacturing executives who had expressed concern that a “buy American” provision in the stimulus legislation could lead to retaliatory actions by other countries. The provision would require infrastructure projects in the stimulus bill to be built with U.S.-made iron and steel.

The final version of the stimulus bill includes the provision, although it says it must be applied in a manner consistent with U.S. obligations under international agreements.

“Absence of that wording would be perceived as violating our trade agreements and risking retaliation by countries accounting for 80 percent of our exports,” said Franklin J. Vargo, vice president for international economic affairs at the National Association of Manufacturers. “Even with that language, the provision affects countries not participating in the World Trade Organization agreement or not having a bilateral trade agreement with the United States.”

And a reasonable Washington Post editorial, “A Fiscal Gamble — The stimulus package isn’t pretty, but it is a risk worth taking.”

Finally, Bloomberg reports on the weakened tax provisions included in the final conference report, a set-back for manufacturing and the economy, “Tax benefit push falls short“:

WASHINGTON — The National Association of Manufacturers lost a last-minute lobbying campaign to fully restore a business tax break that House and Senate negotiators all but eliminated from the $789 billion economic stimulus bill.

Instead, lawmakers agreed to make more companies eligible for the tax break while still shutting large companies out of the benefit, according to a description released by the Senate Finance and House Ways and Means committees.

For the NAM’s view of these developments, the tax provisions, and our support for final passage, see this statement and letter posted at Shopfloor.org last evening.

Chicago Tribune, “Obama touts deal as boost to Caterpillar workers:”

WASHINGTON — Even before the deal was completed in Congress, President Barack Obama on Wednesday said evidence already had turned up that his economic rescue plan would improve the lives of American workers.

Three times during the day, the White House asserted that Caterpillar Inc., the giant maker of construction and other equipment that has recently laid off workers, would be able to rehire employees if Congress approved the stimulus bill.

But as the president prepared for a Thursday trip to visit a Caterpillar plant in East Peoria, Ill., it was not clear how strong an example the company would provide of the job-creating powers of the bill.

USA Today, “Stimulus fight gives Obama lessons early“:

Peoria Journal-Star, “Welcome, Mr. President“:

President Barack Obama will hold a meeting with workers at the Caterpillar Inc.’s Building HH in East Peoria on Thursday to discuss the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan.

The president’s arrival, departure and meeting with workers will be closed to the public.

3 p.m.: Arrival at the Air National Guard 182nd Airlift Wing at the Gen. Wayne A. Downing Peoria International Airport

3:25 p.m.: Meeting with Cat workers at Building HH, 901 W. Washington Ave., East Peoria

5:45 p.m.: Departure from the Air National Guard

Peoria Journal-Star, “Our View: From Abe to Obama, the circle closes in Peoria”

Washington Examiner, “Obama uses Caterpillar to push stimulus plan“:

President Obama chose a Northern Virginia construction site on Wednesday to personalize the stakes of the stimulus plan, saying its passage would give back jobs to laid-off Caterpillar workers.

The company “has announced some 20,000 layoffs in the last few weeks,” Obama said, adding that Chairman and CEO Jim Owens “said that if the [stimulus] passes, his company would be able to rehire some of those employees.”

Jim Geraghty, National Review Online, “If You Want to Quote Caterpillar, Mr. President . . .”: “Say, President Obama, perhaps you ought to also pay attention to what the company is saying about the “Buy American” provisions in the legislation.”