Bush, following a meeting with Vice President Dick Cheney and congressional leaders at the White House today, told reporters that the administration is considering different alternatives to give both individuals and businesses tax breaks above and beyond his current 10-year, $1.35 trillion tax rebate plan.  The president declined to specify the size of the stimulus package under contemplation, but lawmakers have said a package of up to $100 billion has been discussed. That figure would include the $40 billion emergency spending bill passed to deal with the terrorist attack aftermath and the $15 billion airline aid measure.  But he did say that the stimulus plan should be designed to help get the economy back on track without overdoing it. "What's needed is a stimulus package big enough to get the economy moving in the short run but small enough so that it doesn't affect long-term interest rates, for example," Bush said.  "Whatever we have to do, it has to be significant and has to be temporary," said Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, a Montana Democrat. "It's important for Congress to have a calming effect and not act precipitously."  According to a senior administration official, the president wants a stimulus package that will build consumer and business confidenceand help unemployed workers.  For consumers, that could mean a temporary deduction in the payroll tax or another rebate for individuals who did not get one the first time around. For businesses, that could mean alternate minimum tax reductions and targeted income tax cuts, such as accelerated depreciation schedules for equipment. For the unemployed, whatever is going to be done will have a "shelf life," the official said.  Bush and leaders from both parties also talked about other options, including cutting corporate income tax rates, providing tax incentives for business investment, increasing spending on transportation and security, lowering payroll taxes for low-income workers, extending unemployment benefits and raising the minimum wage.  "All of us are listening to the voices of leading economists. We're all open for suggestions. The best way to stimulate demand is to give people some money so that they can spend it," Bush said.  It's a foregone conclusion among virtually all economists that stimulus in some form will come in the wake of last month's attacks that rocked the already fragile economy and all but paved the way for negative growth through the remainder of this year.  Alan Krueger, an economics professor with Princeton University, said either a payroll tax rebate or a temporary sales tax cut would be the best way to bolster consumer spending. "A temporary sales tax cut would probably give you the biggest bang for the buck in terms of consumer spending," he said.  Official: Headed for Recession And while President Bush opted to "let the number crunchers" determine whether the economy is offically in recession, his chief economic adviser and No. 1 number-cruncher said today there is a high probability the economy will have two consecutive quarters of negative growth  the textbook definition of recession. The statement by R. Glenn Hubbard, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, was the first by a high Bush administration official to forecast the nation's first recession in more than a decade. And that assessment has him convinced that Congress should move swiftly to help further stimulate the economy. "It's not how big the fiscal stimulus package is, but what you put in it," Hubbard said. Congressional tax and budget writers have been meeting with leading economists, including Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, in an effort to determine just how badly the economy was hurt in the wake of the attacks, and how much of a remedy it might need. Greenspan has publicly cautioned Congress to be conservative in its initiatives, indicating that Bush's existing tax-cut package as well as an additional $60 billion in funds or loans for security, defense, reconstruction, and airline assistance and a significant decline in short-term rates by the Fed will already stimulate growth very soon. Greenspan is expected to hold a follow-up meeting with leading lawmakers Wednesday. -- ABCNEWS' Terry Moran and ABCNEWS Radio contributed to this report  And while President Bush opted to "let the number crunchers" determine whether the economy is offically in recession, his chief economic adviser and No. 1 number-cruncher said today there is a high probability the economy will have two consecutive quarters of negative growth  the textbook definition of recession.  The statement by R. Glenn Hubbard, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, was the first by a high Bush administration official to forecast the nation's first recession in more than a decade. And that assessment has him convinced that Congress should move swiftly to help further stimulate the economy.  "It's not how big the fiscal stimulus package is, but what you put in it," Hubbard said.  Congressional tax and budget writers have been meeting with leading economists, including Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, in an effort to determine just how badly the economy was hurt in the wake of the attacks, and how much of a remedy it might need.  Greenspan has publicly cautioned Congress to be conservative in its initiatives, indicating that Bush's existing tax-cut package as well as an additional $60 billion in funds or loans for security, defense, reconstruction, and airline assistance and a significant decline in short-term rates by the Fed will already stimulate growth very soon.  Greenspan is expected to hold a follow-up meeting with leading lawmakers Wednesday. -- ABCNEWS' Terry Moran and ABCNEWS Radio contributed to this report
- An economic stimulus package is definitely on the way, but it's still unclear exactly how much Washington will spend to bolster the struggling economy.