RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. (AP) — The White House says a costly spending bill President Barack Obama signed into law five years ago Monday was good for the economy and helped the U.S. avoid another Great Depression.

Republicans are taking a dimmer view, arguing that the $787 billion economic stimulus bill amounted to too much spending for too few results.

The White House says in a new report that the bill, among other things, saved or created an average of 1.6 million jobs a year between 2009 and 2012.

Obama signed the massive spending bill a few weeks into the job to help the economy recover from its worst downturn in a generation.

Republican House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio says too many Americans are still asking "Where are the jobs?" the administration promised.