House approves third economic stimulus tax package

WASHINGTON -- For the third time, and probably again in vain, the House on Thursday approved a $150 billion Republican economic stimulus package based on business and individual tax cuts.

Democrats said the bill would go nowhere in the Senate and would delay aid to the jobless.

After blocking two previous GOP stimulus bills, the Democratic-led Senate last week approved a straightforward 13-week extension of unemployment benefits. House Republican leaders, eager to keep recession recovery a high-profile political issue, decided to attach to that a broader package mirroring a bill they passed in December.

"We are going to try, and try, and try," said Rep. Rob Portman, R-Ohio. "Maybe the third time's the charm."

The House passed the bill, endorsed by President Bush, on a 225-199 vote, with 10 Democrats joining all but one Republican, Rep. Connie Morella of Maryland, in support. Like the GOP's previous efforts, Senate Democrats said it contained too many tax cuts aimed at businesses and people with higher incomes.

"This isn't going anywhere," said Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D. "I think the Republican leadership should be embarrassed for what they're doing."

Even before the House action, the Senate reaffirmed its support for the 13-week extension of benefits by approving the measure again Thursday on a unanimous voice vote.

Much of Thursday's House debate involved partisan fingerpointing over the failure to agree on a plan to help the economy recover.

Democrats accused the GOP of blindly pushing tax cuts for the well-off rather than helping millions of jobless people continue to receive benefits beyond the 26-week limit.

Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., said the GOP effort was "almost savage in its insensitivity to people who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own."

About 2 million people, or almost 81,000 per week, will exhaust their regular unemployment benefits in the first six months of 2002, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a think tank that studies the impact of fiscal issues on middle-income people.