Washington — Washington - Everyone's got a wish list at holiday time. With Washington about to go on a spending spree of massive proportions, it's a good time to survey members of Maryland's congressional delegation and find out what's on their list for 2009.
Sen. Barbara Mikulski's goal to "get our economy rolling again" is no doubt shared by all. And who could argue with House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer's desire to help President Barack Obama succeed in saving millions of jobs next year?
Making health care more efficient, cleaning up the environment, getting U.S. troops out of Iraq and keeping Americans from losing their homes are among the Marylanders' broad goals.
But looked at more closely, the views of Maryland's representatives suggest something else: outlines of an agenda that, under a new Democratic president, could well produce one of the most active periods of government in Washington since the Great Society of the 1960s.
The rare combination of an economic emergency and a popular new president has the potential to generate significant action on initiatives that might otherwise have gotten bogged down in D.C. gridlock.
The ideas fall into two major categories: short-term and longer. The first includes spending designed to boost economic recovery by providing the quickest stimulus - though the full impact of many projects won't be felt soon. Obama warned Friday that fixing the economy will take "years, not months. It will get worse before it gets better."
At the top of the list: public works programs, unsexy but effective. Upward of $200 billion will likely be spent on infrastructure projects, including building new highways and updating existing roads and bridges.
Rep. Elijah E. Cummings of Baltimore says he is encouraged that Obama, the first urban president of the modern era, is sensitive to the problems of cities and has hinted that money should go to areas with the greatest need.
"Our schools are in horrible shape in the city - I'm talking about the physical structures," he said. Estimates call for spending at least $20 billion nationally to repair existing buildings.
Putting medical records online, at a cost of $50 billion over five years, is another likely piece of a stimulus package.
State governments will get in the neighborhood of $100 billion nationally to close the gap for Medicaid, the health care program for the poor. There is also likely to be additional direct aid to bail states out of a hole that is forcing many, including Maryland, to consider layoffs next year.
