Selling the Stimulus — to Federal Workers?

ABC News’ Rick Klein reports: It’s the latest “shovel-ready” solution. The federal government is now advertising the stimulus package to . . . federal workers. It’s part an interesting ad campaign that’s been launched in Washington. The ads include three small, identical billboards inside Union Station, a major commuter hub just a few blocks from the Capitol. “Let’s Make Progress TOGETHER,” the ads state, with text bannered over a picture of hands touching an American flag. In the bottom right of the ad is the distinctive circular logo for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act — better known as the stimulus package. The ads tout “GSA Acquisition Solutions . . . ‘Shovel-Ready.’ ” The ads are sharing wall space with ads for Carnival Cruise Lines, near one of the Metro entrances at Union Station. What’s going on? Why would the federal government need to be advertising the stimulus to its own workers? The ad was placed by the US General Services Administration, a lesser-known federal agency that essentially exists to provide support for other federal agencies. According to a GSA spokesman, the ad is paid for out of GSA’s regular advertising budget — not stimulus dollars. ABC News asked for more details on how much is being spent on the ads, and how extensive the ad campaign is; we’ll update this post when we get more information. The ad touts a Website, gsa.gov/recoverysolutions, which provides information about a suite of GSA services available to federal workers who are working on stimulus contracts for their agencies.  Michael Robertson, a GSA spokesman, said the ads are designed to encourage government workers to make purchases through GSA-negotiated price schedules. Everything from office supplies to computer support and custodial services can be cheaper through GSA, he said. “The government agencies are GSA’s clients,” he said. “We compete with the rest of the market to provide services to the government agencies.” As for how ads at Metro stops fit with the GSA mission, Robertson said: “This is DC; most federal workers are here. You try and find the consumers where they live.”