1. What are the goals of President Obama's Economic Recovery Act? (see "Background" for the answer)

2. a) How much money was allocated for the stimulus plan?
b) How much of this do Senators McCain and Coburn cite as going to silly and shortsighted projects in their report "Stimulus Checkup"?

3. a) Why does Senator Coburn criticize the allocation of $1.8 million for river cruise boats in Oklahoma City?
b) How does Oklahoma Transportation manager Michael Scroggins defend the project?

4. a) Why does the Senators' report criticize the $1.1 million research project at Oklahoma State University?
b) Gary Shutt of OSU defended the project in para. 10-11. How many jobs did he say would be created at OSU from the funding?

5. a) Re-read para. 12 and visit the link under "Resources." Do you think these funds, totaling $7 billion dollars of taxpayers' money, are being used in a responsible manner or are being wasted as the Senators assert? Explain your answer.
b) Ask a parent the same question.

6. The McCain/Coburn report states: "Since the stimulus bill was enacted in February, nearly three million Americans have lost their jobs and the percentage of people who are without work has risen to 10 percent. ... More jobs have been lost than created." How does this assertion contradict Recovery Act spokeswoman Liz Oxhorn's assurance about the job situation?

7. NewsOK.com quoted Sen. Coburn: "Our national debt has doubled over the past 10 years because Washington can't set priorities. Wasteful project after wasteful projects has piled up, creating a mountain of debt for future generations. With just over $200 billion stimulus dollars spent already, we hope this report will encourage the administration to spend remaining stimulus funds more wisely."
and Sen. McCain, who said "With unemployment at 10 percent and an escalating national debt, we cannot afford to spend taxpayer dollars on projects that don't create jobs or promote real and sustainable economic growth. This report shows that much of the stimulus bill has been a failure."
Sen. McCain pointed to the current jobless rate [10% unemployment] and [1.4 trillion] national debt, adding the nation cannot afford to spend taxpayer dollars on projects that do not create jobs or promote real economic growth.
Do you agree with the Senators, or with White House spokeswoman Liz Oxhorn, who said the Obama administration's unprecedented transparency and accountability effort is blocking bad projects from getting Recovery Act funds, and that "That effort is a huge success"? Explain your answer.