If Barack Obama's plan to reinvigorate the economy goes through, New York City is going to get the most assistance we've seen in a long time. Bush, through his people at Homeland Security sent valuable anti-terror dollars to the middle of Kansas while short-changing NYC. That was the attitude of the federal government towards us before last Tuesday. Now it is a whole different story.
From The NY Daily News:
According to Sen. Chuck Schumer, the funds - part of the $10 billion to $15 billion in federal stimulus money the state is expected to receive - should help the city offset its budget deficit and aid shortfalls in education funding.
Schumer (D-N.Y.) said he fought to include in the stimulus package a provision to send budget aid directly to cities - to ensure New York City gets its fair share.
"This is a lifeline. This is the biggest shot in the arm the federal government has given New York City in a long time," he said.
The package includes about $1.8 billion in budget aid for New York and $1.6 billion for education, Schumer said.
The $3.4 billion may not solve all our woes, but it is certainly a healthy amount of aid that we desperately need. Now if Bloomberg had the guts to take back the $1.3 billion in goodies given to the Yankees and Mets, that would be another great step forward, but I doubt that will ever happen on Mayor Mike's watch.
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