Florida Gov. Charlie Crist (R) said that the stimulus was working in his home state, bucking other national Republicans who have sharply criticized the measure. Crist, however, said that he did not anticipate the need for a second stimulus bill. "It's pretty incredible that 26,000 teachers will continue to work for Florida's children because of these additional monies…And that's really the point. This is to help people, Crist told the Miami Herald, referring to thousands of teachers' jobs saved by federal stimulus funds.
It strikes me as highly unlikely that Charlie Crist would have presided over the firing of 26,000 teachers if the stimulus hadn't passed. Meanwhile, the Washington Post reports, "Nationwide, the administration says, only about 7 percent of the stimulus money has been allocated so far and most of the impact of the spending will be felt in late 2009 and throughout 2010." Notice that 7 percent of the stimulus money has been allocated--not spent--so far.