February 18, 2009 10:04AM # Update–2012 GOP Contenders and the Stimulus By [Michael D. Tanner](https://www.cato.org/people/michael-d-tanner) --- SHARE Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal [has indicated ](http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/02/17/politics/politicalhotsheet/entry4807323.shtml?CMP=OTC-RSSFeed&source=RSS&attr=PoliticalHotsheet_4807323)that he may refuse $4 billion in federal funds that his state is scheduled to receive under the stimulus bill that President Obama signed this week. Earlier South Carolina governor Mark Sanford [said](http://www.usnews.com/blogs/robert-schlesinger/2009/02/17/key-republican-governors-like-palin-oppose-the-obama-stimulus-package.html) he would turn down the money. Alaska governor Sarah Palin has also [suggested](http://newsminer.com/weblogs/dermot-cole/2009/feb/16/governor-can-say/) she may say no to stimulus funds. On the other side, of course, Florida governor Charlie Crist was perhaps the most ardent Republican proponent of the stimulus bill. (Mitt Romney opposed the stimulus, but since he is no longer a governor he doesn’t face the difficult decision of whether to put principle above “free” federal money). Who knows, Republicans in 2012 might actually have candidates who are (or at least want to be) fiscal conservatives. ##### Related Tags [General](https://www.cato.org/general), [Government and Politics](https://www.cato.org/government-politics) [![Creative Commons License](/build/cato_2020/images/creative-commons.svg)](http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/) This work is licensed under a [Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/).