The stimulus package Obama announced Saturday is thrilling. I've thought for years and years about the possibility of an American president announcing a plan worth many billions of dollars to rebuild the country's infrastructure, and then, after a few moments' reverie, have slapped myself on the cheek and reminded myself that no such thing would ever happen in my lifetime.
So I'll have a lot to say about it as time goes on, but for now, let's just remember that it will have to pass Congress. I would assume that almost every House Republican will oppose it, but that's basically okay, since the Democrats have the votes there. The issue will be the Senate (this is why people talked about 60 Senate votes so obsessively). There, Obama will need to persuade a few Republicans -- and presumably a few Democrats from conservative states -- to play ball. So the proposal will be reshaped.
How? Bill Kristol's NYT column this morning suggests that Kristol for one does not think conservatives have to oppose this package tooth and nail. He even seems to grant it a degree of inevitability. He suggests that Republicans fight to include military and homeland-security spending in the package. Depending on what it is, this may be fine, and it may be what's needed to get the votes. But it's interesting that he's not signaling to conservatives "fight fight fight."
