A new report by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities makes five key points about the Recovery Act that should be repeated over and over, as opponents of federal aid to victims of the Great Recession dig trenches in preparation for combating future relief.

1: Recent increases in unemployment do not mean the law is not working.

2: The Administration and Congress expected the stimulus money to be spent gradually over the next two to three years, and what’s been spent to date is stimulating the economy and helping millions of Americans.

3: The nation faces a very serious long-term budget problem, but the recovery law will exacerbate that problem only a very small amount.

4: The law was specifically designed to help states close their budget shortfalls.

5: States are properly using stimulus funds for short-term projects.

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