Obama Team Is Seeking Stimulus Bill by New Year

President-elect Barack Obama's advisers hope to finish an economic recovery blueprint by Dec. 25 so that Democratic Congressional staff members can draft legislation by the new year, as the two branches of government try to converge on a two-year plan by late January that could total just under $1 trillion. "The goal for completing action on this important legislation should be as close to Jan. 20 as possible," said an e-mail message from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's office to senior Senate Democratic staff members. Some Obama advisers have sought to tamp down expectations that Mr. Obama could sign a package immediately after he is inaugurated. The opposition of some Senate Republicans and House and Senate negotiations on a final compromise could force delays into February. Democrats familiar with the early deliberations say the preliminary price tag has grown to about $800 billion from the roughly $600 billion that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had estimated in recent days.