The Wall Street Journal brings some unlikely economic analysts to the forefront: laid-off recreational vehicle builders. In single-industry towns like Elkhart, Ind., which depends on the RV business, workers question whether the stimulus package, which pays for jobs in unfamiliar areas, like road construction and health care, will help with their plights. The stimulus' extended unemployment benefits and increased tax deductions on vehicle purchases may offer some relief, but workers there say their livelihood depends on rapid thaws in the credit markets.
Alaskan Gov. Sarah Palin, the one-time Republican nominee for vice president, has out Jonesed her counterpart in South Carolina, rejecting as much as 45 percent (accountsvary) of stimulus money bound for her state. Attempts by state legislatures to bypass other stimulus-opposing governors are stalling in otherstates.