I offer my congratulations to House Democrats for their egregious victory of passing the biggest spending bill this country has ever seen. I offer my sympathies to the American public, who will not see reprieve from their economic suffering any time soon.

Last Friday, when the House of Representatives came together to vote on the fate of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, I made the decision to vote against a bill that I knew would not provide the revival that our economy desperately needs. In our state of economic emergency, this bill—filled to the brim with non-emergency spending—makes a mockery of Americans who are struggling just to get by. 

Americans are hurting financially and Congress needed to take action, but the solution should not have been an onslaught of rash spending. Money should be given back to the people by means of fast-acting tax relief to stimulate the economy through consumer spending. Unfortunately, the faction that won the stimulus contest thought pet project spending by the government was a better idea. The result is a disjointed spending bill that is unlikely to help our economy at all.