INVESTOR’S BUSINESS DAILY: Did The Stimulus Prevent A Second Great Depression? Evidence Says No.
The conclusion is that in claiming to have staved off a Depression, the White House and its supporters seem to be engaging in a bit of historical revisionism.
Economists weren’t predicting a Depression.
White House economists forecast in January 2009 that, even without a stimulus, unemployment would top out at just 8.8% — well below the 10.8% peak during the 1981-82 recession, and nowhere near Depression-era unemployment levels.
In fact, it did worse with the stimulus than they predicted it would do without a stimulus, but I don’t think this helps the White House’s case.