American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 was designed to stimulate the economy and help America recover from the recession. It was passed by the Congress in February of 2009. Designed to promote both jobs and investment, the Recovery Act followed other recovery programs that were passed during the Bush presidency. The measures in the Recovery Act add up to $787 billion, in both short- and long-term plans. The bill was voted down by most of the Republicans in Congress, but there were enough Democrats in both the House and the Senate to get the bill through. By September of 2009, less than 20% of the stimulus money had been handed out, with the rest to be spread out over time. There were pros and cons to the package and arguments as to its effectiveness throughout the country.