Congressional Leaders Meet with Obama to Discuss Potential Recovery Extensions.
President Barack Obama hosted congressional leaders at the White House in early October to talk about the growing unemployment rate, which reached 9.8 percent in September — a 26-year-high. Leaders have made it clear there will not be a second major stimulus bill this year. Instead, they are looking at what aspects of the existing $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, adopted in February, could be extended or beefed up with additional dollars to further try to revive the sluggish economy. Sources told Congressional Quarterly Today that major talks about which programs to extend or add funding to are not expected to gear up for another week or two since legislation to overhaul the healthcare system is presently dominating the congressional agenda.
The discussions have included boosting transportation spending, Bloomberg News reported. Administration officials have told allies in Congress that a broader transportation bill is on the table along with extensions of a homebuyer tax credit and unemployment benefits.