I'm going to suggest you seriously consider going a different route.
Flat screen, fixed pixel displays are not the best way to go at this time, if you do buy one now you'll be buying towards the end of the generation technology wise, there are much better technologies on the horizon than plasma and LCD, which both have significant drawbacks.
As I see it, there are basically three really good choices in TVs right now.
1. Get an inexpensive philips 30 or 34" HD widescreen CRT TV, the 30" will cost about $350 and the 34" about $6-700.
2. Get a sony CRT for about twice that much for the same size, but knowing you have the best picture quality available at any price. Ask any hardcore gamer or videophile about how to get the best picture quality and they'll tell you a Sony hi-res HD CRT.
3. Get a huge rear-projection CRT if you have the room, they also have better picture quality than the flat screens you can hang on the wall, and they cost MUCH MUCH less, for $2K you can get the biggest, best CRT you can fit in your living room.
The only downside to any of these TVs is that they're big and heavy and you can't hang them on the wall, in every other way they are equal to or better than the fixed-pixel displays, they have faster refresh rates, better contrast, display true blacks, don't burn in or burn out pixels, and because they're not fixed pixel displays they look better when displaying SD or DVD sources, and obviously they are MUCH cheaper for the same size and picture quality.
With a $2000 budget I would buy a 34" Sony widescreen HD CRT, no question in my mind at all, and you'll have $800 or so left over for a super surround sound system, DVR, DVD burner, player, etc., or maybe just buy another AR.