Here's some interesting critique of the stimulus package: it was primarily focused on funding social programs (health care, education, unemployment benefits, food stamps, and other social services) instead of "shovel-ready" jobs in infrastructure, construction, and manufacturing that the administration sold it on.
In fact, only 15% of the $360 billion in spending was spent on actual infrastructure projects ($425 billion was tax cuts). That's $54 billion to be divided amongst 50 states + DC.
I guess that's also a possible reason why Obama and the Dems haven't done so well amongst working class whites as well, because they relied on those jobs while stimulus funds went to sectors in the service economy that benefited Democratic groups. Of course, that's just speculation.
This article comes off as anti-feminist, but if you can put that aside it does make some good points: http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/016/659dkrod.asp?page=2
And some of the shovel-ready projects only recently finished, like building an enormous, raised banked freeway through the town I used to live in that rises twenty feet above the whole landscape for no discernible reason
