The $800 billion stimulus law had as much (or more) to do with improving the education system and rail lines, installing universal broadband, and modernizing electrical grids as reducing the unemployment rate.[1] Consequently, the best that can be said regarding the spending is that it probably played a role in keeping unemployment from getting even worse than it did.
The full essay is at "Obama's Economic Stimulus."
1, Matt Bai, “Crisis Past, Obama May Have Missed a Chance,” The New York Times, September 8, 2010.
