Dec. 31, 2011
(iStockphoto)
On this date, two important U.S. stimulus programs are set to expire, which could cut nearly two percentage points off economic growth in 2012. Congress may still vote to extend the federal payroll tax cut, which saves the typical earner about $75 per month, and the federal extension of jobless benefits, which puts money into the pockets of more than a million unemployed people. But time is running short before Congress adjourns for the year—and Washington politics are as fractious as ever.
