In a last-minute turn-around, the modest $50 million bump for the National Endowment for the Arts was saved in the $800-billion economic stimulus act signed into law by president Barack Obama today, Feb. 17. In addition, the so-called "Coburn Amendment," making theaters and art centers off-limits for stimulus funds, was modified. A New York Times article on the development credits the team of representatives Norm Dicks, Louise M. Slaughter, David R. Obey and Nancy Pelosi, who fought for the value of the arts against charges that it benefited only a "leftist elite." However, real credit seems due to what the article describes as "tens of thousands of arts advocates around the country" who blitzed lawmakers with phone calls on the issue, putting the NEA boost back on the table.
