This Week on Capitol Hill

Budget '10: Congress will be a sideshow this week as DC's main events come courtesy of the White House. After squeaking a $787 billion stimulus package through Congress two weeks ago, then disappointing Wall Street with a much anticipated revamp of the TARP bailout bill last week, the administration won't be spared economic headaches this week when it presents the outline of a proposed budget for 2010. To prepare the nation for $1 trillion deficit sticker-shock, President Obama will start off the week with a "financial responsibility" summit on Monday and a congressional address on Tuesday, hoping to get across the point that fiscal sobriety will - someday - return to DC.

• more on the '10 Budget, the stimulus bill, and DC's other efforts to save the economy

Budget '09: Meanwhile the House will be polishing off budget business from last year, voting on a bundle of nine (out of twelve) spending bills for the current fiscal year. Opting to avoid a budget tussle with President Bush, Congress put off passing all non-defense spending items last year, instead approving a "continuing resolution" to keep funding at 2008 levels through March 6.

• more about the '09 Budget

Housing Help: Following up on a mortgage rescue plan proposed by the administration last week, the House will vote on a measure to let bankruptcy judges restructure (or "cram down") mortgages to levels families can handle. Lawmakers may also revise the "Hope for Homeowners" bill passed in '09, intended to encourage banks to voluntarily refinance up to 400,000 mortgages. So far that bill has only provided hope for 25 families.

• more on the housing crisis and DC's reaction

If you want to let your Congressfolk know where you stand on any of the issues above, you can email them through Congress.org, because...

Hey, it's your democracy too.

- teamJoe

Next update: March 2, 2009.