Economy: Obama Brags About Treading Water

After President Barack Obama said, "The private sector is doing fine," he later quickly regrouped. "The economy is not doing fine (emphasis added). That's the reason I had the press conference." But Obama said he was particularly concerned about losses in the public sector. The cluelessness is absolutely stunning. Obama is wrong about both the private and public sector.

Obama's assessment of the economy reminds many of 2008 Republican presidential candidate John McCain's characterization of the economy. In September 2008, the investment firm Lehman Brothers was collapsing. Wall Street was shaking as the yet-to-be-declared recession deepened, but McCain said: "I think, still, the fundamentals of our economy are strong. But these are very, very difficult times."

The reaction to McCain was harsh. His opponent, then-Sen. Obama, pounced: "We just woke up to news of financial disaster, and this morning he said that the fundamentals of the economy are still strong? Sen. McCain, what economy are you talking about?"

The Washington Post said: "Sen. Barack Obama seized on McCain's assessment of the health of the economy, blasting the Republican for being 'disturbingly out of touch' with the reality that everyday Americans face. 'I just think he doesn't know,' Obama said in Grand Junction, Colo. 'He doesn't get what's happening between the mountain in Sedona where he lives and the corridors of Washington where he works.'"

In McCain's case, unemployment at the time was 6.1 percent and rising. The economy was experiencing "negative growth." But in Obama's case, he correctly states we are in recovery. "The truth of the matter is," said the President, "we have created 4.3 million jobs over the last 27 months."

Last month, the economy produced a pathetic 69,000 jobs. The National Bureau of Economic Analysis revised last quarter's gross domestic product growth downward to a paltry 1.9 percent.

Economist John Lott points out: "Thirty-six months into the recovery and the private sector hasn't even made up half the jobs lost during the recession, let alone make up for the fact that there are about 7.6 million more working age people than when the recession started. What about the 4.2 million that were lost between when Obama became president and February 2010? The 'growth' just replaces what was lost during the first part of his administration. Let alone the 8.8 million private-sector jobs that were lost between when the recession started."

It takes 150,000 new jobs per month just to keep pace with population growth, those coming into the market from high school and college. Obama's 4.3 million jobs divided by 27 months comes to an average of about 159,000 jobs over that stretch. That is treading water, not even close to the number it takes to make a dent in the 8.2 percent unemployment.

According to Investors.com: "Private-sector jobs are still down by 4.6 million, or 4 percent, from January 2008, when overall employment peaked. Meanwhile, government jobs are down just 407,000, or 1.8 percent. Federal employment actually is 225,000 jobs above its January 2008 level, an 11.4 percent increase. That's right, up 11.4 percent. ... The recession was boomtime for federal employment, especially after Obama took office. Federal jobs kept rising (excluding a temporary Census surge in early 2010) until March 2011 -- more than three years after overall payrolls peaked."

Economist Lott also says the federal public sector is holding up particularly well: "The only group of workers 'doing just fine' is federal government employees, where employment has increased by 4 percent since the start of the recession. In sharp contrast, both private-sector and state and local-government employment have fallen, with the private sector in the worst shape. Private-sector employment is down by 4 percent and state and local government down by half that -- 2 percent. Between 2007 and 2010, annual wages also grew 40 percent faster for state and local-government workers than for those in the private sector."

Our latest recession lasted 18 months, ending 36 months ago, in June 2009. Look at the recovery from the deep recession of the early '80s. At this point during the recovery from that 16-month recession, which began in July 1981 and ended in November 1982, the economy had produced an 8.9 percent increase in civilian employment -- almost 9 million jobs. Real GDP growth averaged over 5 percent in the first three years of the Reagan recovery, compared to an average of 2.4 percent three years into the Obama recovery.

The numbers in the early '80s were grim: a peak 10.8 percent unemployment, 13.5 percent average inflation, prime interest rates at 20.5 percent. But driven by Reagan's policies of lower taxes, slowing the rate of domestic spending and less regulation, the economy staged a ferocious comeback.

Reagan distrusted government and sought to restrain its growth. Obama, the former community organizer, believes government creates jobs and that "social justice" empowers him to redistribute wealth -- according to those he deems worthy.

“The truth of the matter is,” said the President, “we have created 4.3 million jobs over the last 27 months.”

The Romney campaign should let loose with a “Just name one”
campaign slogan challenging Obama to name one permanent private sector job his stimulus created. Other than bankruptcy paralegals I cannot think of one. Most of the money went to plugging state deficits allowing them to retain public sector workers for another year or two they would have otherwise laid off immediately. Solyndra does not count as they turned out to be temporary jobs as a matter of hindsight.

“and that “social justice” empowers him to redistribute wealth — according to those he deems worthy.”

This is the foremost factor that drives him, by far, and underneath the controlled exterior it is highly likely that there resides a significant amount of biased anger. To make matters worse, he appears to have no real understanding of what social justice truly is. He appears to be someone who has long-held dogmatic views that he developed on the basis of limited knowledge, experience, or understanding, and who never questions them. The combination of dogma and power is always scary.

America's Founders foresaw a time when, as George Washington observed in his Farewell Address, some person, more "artful" than the rest, might endanger the liberty which was intended to be preserved and protected by our written Constitution.

In order for that to happen, "the People," however, who, according to Justice Story, are the "only KEEPERS" of the Constitution, under its provisions in Article V, would be required to relinquish their role. They would have to allow another citizen/citizens to erect themselves above the very Constitution which limits whatever power the Constitution specifies for elected representatives. That must not happen, or liberty is lost.

As posted on another thread today which features the interview with Robert Reich, we have an opportunity right now for a "teaching moment" with our friends, our youth, teachers, and any who are seriously trying to understand the economic plight we're in.

Simply referring them to the Foundation for Economic Education web site might begin an enlightening experience for those who want to be able to counter the ridiculous claims of people like Reich and the "talking heads" on cable and network news.

On this FEE web page, are links to current articles, as well as archives. From simple economic lessons, like "I, Pencil," to a current work entitled "Great Myths of the Great Depression," there are easy-to-read explanations which explode the many myths of Keynesian ideas and other threats to individual liberty.

If our generations miss this opportunity to educate generations who have been deliberately misled and "dumbed down" by the controllers and censors of the so-called "progressives," then future generations most certainly will be slaves to big government and the tyrants who perpetuate them.

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