Republicans plan to test just how committed President Barack Obama is to the idea of bipartisanship, as yet another stimulus package with a staggering price tag–$825 billion–heads for debate in the House of Representatives this week.

The New York Times points out that Republicans are already grumbling that the plan seems to be a spending spree that does nothing to lower taxes.

Higher or lower, taxes are certain to be impacted, as The Associated Press writes, noting that Obama and members of Congress, such as Betsy Markey of Colorado’s Fourth Congressional District are “getting an earful about how to proceed.”

Markey waded through a crowd in Loveland this weekend, “trying to reassure skeptics” that Congress will find a solution to repair the ailing economy. At times, she “seemed to be selling even herself” on the idea, the AP adds.

Meanwhile, the latest indicator of trouble in Colorado is the disrepair of the road-and-bridge building industry, which just a year ago employed 80,000 Coloradans. Now the number of people working in the industry is half that, according to the Denver Business Journal, which reports that more workers will lose jobs unless government and private investors step up with cash.