The US economy has been operating at unsustainable levels of consumption for a long time. I don't think a recovery to previous levels should really be expected. That the Obama administration is pimping policies that are going to lead to bubbles - the bullshit they call green and carbon cap and trade - is pretty disturbing policy.
The government should have spent all of this money on infrastructure, social services, health care, etc. to help people adjust to reduced economic expectations. They should be working on breaking up big, destructive institutions like Monsanto, Goldman Sachs, and the like.