by Calculated Risk on 12/18/2008 04:27:00 PM

From the WSJ: Obama Team Aims to Keep Stimulus Under $1 Trillion

President-elect Barack Obama's economic team is crafting a stimulus package to send to Congress worth between $675 billion and $775 billion over two years ... The transition team has conveyed the figures to Capitol Hill, where the package is likely to grow as it works its way through the House and Senate. An Obama adviser familiar with the planning said the package could top out around $850 billion.
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Both sides in the talks want a package ready when Congress returns Jan. 6, so legislation can reach the House and Senate floors before Mr. Obama's Jan. 20 inauguration.
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[The plan] will include a tax cut designed to pump $50 billion to $100 billion into the economy almost immediately; around $100 billion in aid to state governments, primarily to temporarily assume more of the cost of Medicaid, in hopes of staving off benefit cuts or tax increases; and funding in five main areas: traditional infrastructure, school construction, energy efficiency, broadband access and health-information technology.

It sounds like this bill will be around $850 billion over two years, and will be signed before the end of January. Add this to the stimulus from lower gasoline and energy bills, lower adjustable rate mortgages, and lower rates for those that refinance. That is a lot of stimulus ...