This is a good summary of the nonsense spouted by the Obama administration on the economy versus the facts on the ground. Compare ideological prattling against reality:
"Everybody agrees that the recession is over." --Larry Summers, (ABC's This Week, December 13, 2009)
CLAIM #1 – On October 31, 2009, President Obama stated, “The Recovery Act is saving and creating jobs all across the country.”
■AMERICA’S REALITY: According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics data, forty-three states currently have higher unemployment rates than when the Democrats approved their $814 billion stimulus plan in February 2009. Two states currently have the same unemployment rate as in February 2009.
CLAIM #2 – On December 1, 2009, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi stated, “The Recovery Act is likely producing even more jobs and higher economic growth than originally thought.”
■AMERICA'S REALITY: On August 9, 2010, the Navy Times reported, “The few jobs being created in a stagnant economy do not seem to be going to veterans, as the unemployment rate for former service members rose in July to 8.4 percent overall and to 11.8 percent for Iraq and Afghanistan-era veterans…The situation for veterans remains worse than it was one year ago, according to the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, which reports that in July 2009 the unemployment rate for all veterans was 7.9 percent and that the rate for people who served since September 2001 was 9.8 percent.”
CLAIM #3 – On September 3, 2009, Vice President Joe Biden stated, “[T]here's a growing consensus: The Recovery Act is, in fact, working.”
■AMERICA’S REALITY: On August 24, 2010, the National Association of Realtor’s announced that the sale of previously occupied homes dropped 27.2 percent in the month of July 2010. According to the Associated Press, this represents the largest monthly drop in four decades.
CLAIM #4 – On July 2, 2010, President Obama, in a speech regarding the dismal unemployment numbers for June 2010, stated, “Make no mistake about it, we are headed in the right direction.”
■AMERICA'S REALITY: The Commerce Department, on August 27, 2010, revised its estimate for economic growth in the April-to-June period to 1.6 percent. Gross domestic product growth was previously estimated at 2.4 percent. This anemic growth will not prevent the unemployment rate from rising and raises the prospect of a double dip recession.
CLAIM #5 – On August 24, 2010, Vice President Joe Biden, speaking on the economy, stated, “But there isn’t any doubt, we are moving in the right direction.”
■AMERICA’S REALITY: On August 27, 2010, Reuters reported, “Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said on Friday the economic recovery has weakened more than expected and the Fed stands ready to act if needed to spur slowing growth.” Rather than touting a strong economic recovery, Bernanke stated, “The committee is prepared to provide additional monetary accommodation through unconventional measures if it proves necessary...”
Two of the architects of the stimulus/spending bills passed to squash the continuing economic recession have now tendered their resignations - Peter Orszag and Christina Romer. Romer, amazingly, continues to tout yet another stimulus package for passage. It is as if they live in an alternative universe. What did Einstein define as insanity? To paraphrase - keep doing the same thing and expect a different result? This train of thought fits the bill.
Summer of recovery? I don't think this is anyone's definition of recovery.
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