I am sure most of you remember those dreary Sunday evenings when you were in school before a term-paper deadline. You know, that one piece of work that you put off until the very last moment because you were having too much fun partying to do the work. You resigned yourself to pulling an all-nighter figuring it would be enough but you knew in your heart of hearts it wouldn't be.
Well that's the situation this sack of crap finds himself in.
So now even an all-nighter won't save his fanny and he's left with yet another Dog Ate My Homework excuse. And even that won't fly because, well, ow many of these have we heard already?
Anyway, I digress. The Chicago Jesus is seemingly burning his personal popularity with the public with yet another pivot with laser-like focus on the jobs. Resist We Much on her blog, Predictable History, documented these pivots for your reading pleasure:
NOW – AUGUST 2011: Politico’s Playbook: “DEMS PLAN PIVOT TO JOBS.” (Mike Allen, “DEMS PLAN PIVOT TO JOBS: Transportation, Infrastructure, Tax Breaks On Fall Agenda,” Politico’s “Playbook”, 8/2/11)
THEN – DECEMBER 2009: Politico’s Playbook: “SIREN: White House Plans 'Very Hard Pivot To Jobs' Next Month.” (Mike Allen, “SIREN: White House Plans 'Very Hard Pivot To Jobs' Next Month -- Will Be 'Prescriptive',” Politico’s “Playbook”, 12/23/09)
11/2/09: President Obama Said That The Economy Was His “Overriding Focus.” “This is my administration's overriding focus. Having brought the economy back from the brink, the question is how are we going to make sure that people are getting back to work and able to support their families.” (President Barack Obama, “Remarks By The President During The Meeting Of The President's Economic Recovery Advisory Board,” The White House, 11/2/09)
12/23/09: “SIREN: White House Plans 'Very Hard Pivot To Jobs' Next Month.” (Mike Allen, “SIREN: White House Plans 'Very Hard Pivot To Jobs' Next Month -- Will Be 'Prescriptive',” Politico’s “Playbook”, 12/23/09)
1/14/10: Obama Says He Will “Have A Sustained And Relentless Focus Over The Next Several Months On Accelerating The Pace Of Job Creation, Because That’s Priority Number One.” (President Barack Obama, Remarks At The House Democratic Caucus Retreat, Washington, DC 1/14/10)
1/28/10: Obama Told Town Hall In Tampa, Florida That “Creating Jobs Has To Be Our Number One Priority In 2010.” (President Barack Obama, Remarks At Town Hall Meeting, Tampa, FL, 1/28/10)
1/29/10: Obama Told Congressional Republicans That Americans “Want Us To Focus On Their Job Security.” (President Barack Obama, Remarks At GOP House Issues Conference, Baltimore, MD, 1/29/10)
-By March, The New York Times Asked “Whatever Happened To That Shift From Health Care To The Economy?” “By the time March arrived, President Obama was supposed to be entering his third month of the year talking about three things: jobs, jobs, jobs. … So whatever happened to that shift from health care to the economy?” (Jeff Zeleny, “A Plan To Talk About Jobs, Elbowed Aside By Health Care,” The New York Times, 3/2/10)
3/17/10: Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY): “Congress Is Focusing On What The American People Want Us To Focus On, Which Is Jobs, Jobs, Jobs.” (Brian Faler, “Tax Break For New Hires Clear Congress In Jobs Bill,” Bloomberg, 3/17/10)
4/27/10: "Obama To Focus On Jobs, Rural Economy In Two-Day Midwest Trip." (Roger Runningen, "Obama To Focus On Jobs, Rural Economy In Two-Day Midwest Trip," Bloomberg, 4/27/10)
-“President Barack Obama Embarks On A Two-Day, Campaign-Style Swing Through The Rural Midwest Today To Talk About The U.S. Economy And Jobs As He Turns Attention To What Will Be A Top Issue In The November Midterm Elections.” (Roger Runningen, "Obama To Focus On Jobs, Rural Economy In Two-Day Midwest Trip," Bloomberg, 4/27/10)
5/18/10: "Democrats Shifting Focus Back To Jobs Creation.” (Jackie Calmes, "Democrats Shifting Focus Back To Jobs Creation," The New York Times, 5/18/10)
- “A Year That Democrats Decreed Would Be About ‘Jobs, Jobs, Jobs’ Has Produced A Far Different Check List.” “A year that Democrats decreed would be about ‘jobs, jobs, jobs’ has produced a far different check list as its sixth month nears: health care, financial regulation, energy, a nuclear arms treaty and a Supreme Court vacancy, as well as investigations into a mine accident, a calamitous oil spill, a failed terrorist attack in Times Square and alleged Wall Street fraud... They hope to change that starting this week.” (Jackie Calmes, "Democrats Shifting Focus Back To Jobs Creation," The New York Times, 5/18/10)
6/17/10: The Obama Administration Kicks Off “Recovery Summer … A Six-Week Long Push Designed To Highlight The Jobs Accompanying A Surge In Stimulus-Funded Projects.” “Vice President Joe Biden today will kick off the Obama administration’s ‘Recovery Summer,’ a six-week-long push designed to highlight the jobs accompanying a surge in stimulus-funded projects to improve highways, parks, drinking water and other public works.” (Mike Allen, “Obama, Biden Declare ‘Recovery Summer’,” Politico, 6/17/10)
7/12/10: Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV): “This Work Period, Like Every Work Period, Will Be About Jobs: How To Create Them, How To Save Them …” (Sen. Harry Reid, Floor Remarks, 7/12/10)
8/25/10: MSNBC’s Chuck Todd: “I Have To Say These Housing Numbers, This Entire Summer, Remember It Began – The Administration Called It ‘Recovery Summer.’ Every Economic Indicator Has Collapsed In The Last Two Months.” (MSNBC, “The Daily Rundown,” 8/25/10)
9/8/10: Obama Launches A “Hail-Mary Pass To Stimulate The Economy And Create New Jobs.” “Facing a grim unemployment picture and potentially disastrous mid-term elections for Democrats, President Obama is launching the political equivalent of a hail-Mary pass to stimulate the economy and create new jobs.” (Editorial, “Desperately Seeking Jobs,” The Miami Herald, 9/8/10)
- “Voters Are Entitled To Ask Why The Administration Has Waited So Long To Focus On Job Creation …” “Voters are entitled to ask why the administration has waited so long to focus on job creation (beyond government jobs). By doing so very late in the game, it suggests that Mr. Obama is desperate to find solutions for an economic stimulus plan that failed.” (Editorial, “Desperately Seeking Jobs,” The Miami Herald, 9/8/10)
12/22/10: President Obama Said “We Now Have To Pivot And Focus On Jobs And Growth.” (President Barack Obama, News Conference, Washington D.C., 12/22/10)
- Obama Added That “Making A Dent In The Unemployment Rate” Was His “Singular Focus.” “And my singular focus over the next two years is not rescuing the economy from potential disaster, but rather jumpstarting the economy so that we actually start making a dent in the unemployment rate and we are equipping ourselves so that we can compete in the 21st century.” (President Barack Obama, News Conference, Washington D.C., 12/22/10)
1/31/11: “The White House Has Quickly Pivoted To Jobs After The President’s State Of The Union.” “Turning to domestic politics, the White House has quickly pivoted to jobs after the president’s State of the Union -- even if it’s being overshadowed by the situation in Egypt.” (“First Thoughts: Balancing Act,” NBC News’ “First Read,” 1/31/11)
4/1/11: “Obama’s Day: Turning Back To Jobs … President Obama Returns Today To What He Calls His Top Priority: Jobs.” “Though his presidential hours have been crowded by Libya, Japan and other foreign policy challenges, President Obama returns today to what he calls his top priority: jobs.” (David Jackson, “Obama’s Day: Turning Back To Jobs,” USA Today, 4/1/11)
8/2/11: “OBAMA AND SENATE DEMS PLAN PIVOT TO JOBS: Senate Democrats hope they now have ‘checked the box’ on debt reduction and can move to an agenda focused on job creation and economic growth, through a combination of spending and tax cuts.” (Mike Allen, “DEMS PLAN PIVOT TO JOBS: Transportation, Infrastructure, Tax Breaks On Fall Agenda,” Politico’s “Playbook”, 8/2/11)
CHANCES ARE, THAT LIKE THE OTHER PIVOTS, OBAMA WILL BE MORE FOCUSED ON SAVING HIS OWN JOB RATHER THAN CREATING ANY FOR AMERICA
- "The White House In 2009 “Assumed A Recovery Was Under Way” And So Fixing The Economy Was “No Longer Their Top Priority.” “Today, that brief period of optimism looks like one of the worst things that could have happened to the White House, other Democrats and, above all, the economy. The nascent recovery removed the urgency that the Obama administration and Democratic senators felt in early 2009. They still favored more action, like aid to states and tax cuts, but it was no longer their top priority. They assumed a recovery was under way.” (David Leonhardt, “Job Losses Outweigh Administration’s Successes,” The New York Times, 10/26/10)
Former Rep. Jane Harman (D-CA) Said That ObamaCare Was A Distraction From The “Jobs Problem.” “I agree with that and I think it was an important thing to do but it had a huge cost as it spun out. Because first of all, it was… it sopped up all the brain cells for a year while other problems festered. And I think, I don’t know that we would be farther along with the jobs problem but it is the huge problem and it’s going to be the motivator for a lot of voters in 2012. That was one and two I think because the product was partisan, its acceptance, and Vin’s right, it’s being challenged everywhere has been very tough.” (Former Rep. Jane Harman, Remarks At The Aspen Ideas Festival, Aspen, CO, 6/28/11)
- Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA) Said White House Pushed Health Care And Climate Change Legislation When They Should Have Been Focused On Jobs. “He said the ‘momentum of the campaign’ convinced the White House to move forward with health care and climate change legislation when jobs should have been their priority. Also, putting forth a health care proposal without much guidance to Congress complicated life for senators quite significantly, he said. ‘This health care reform debate was bubbling up through five different committees without this specific legislative framework,’ he said.” (Marc Ambinder, “Webb: Obama Had Wrong Focus In The Beginning,” The Atlantic, 10/1/10)
- President Obama’s “Lack Of A Laser-Like Focus” On The Economy Gave Democrats “Cause For Concern.” “The economy, and Obama's lack of a laser-like focus on the issue, has given some Dems in competitive districts cause for concern. ‘The economy is the biggest issue for voters and for most candidates,’ said Maura Dougherty, a Dem consultant who represents a significant number of clients facing tough re-elections. ‘To have the White House talking about something else is not helpful.’” (Jeremy P. Jacobs, “Obama Struggling To Find Footing On Economy,” Hotline’s On Call Blog, 8/30/10)
Note that this litany of pivot, aside from painting Obama as a whirling Dervish, was compiled IN AUGUST 2011. So you can add a few more spins to the list, I am sure.
Anyway, I am wandering off topic here. The point was that we are being inundated with a fusillade of facts by this clown and his campaign, A.K.A., The Gang That Could Not Shoot Straight. The most prominent of these is the one that gives his ardent tongue-bathers a fit of the vapors and sends the MSM running dog lackeys sprinting for their sequined knee pads: the shibboleth that this administration created 4.3 million jobs. While not consigning this to the scrap heap, Gerri Willis of the Fox Business Network, deconstructs most of this rather artfully:
I am not completely comfortable with Ms Willis' dismissal because it leaves open the door to the rejoinder that El Stiffo inherited these problems and it took the first fourteen months (forty one minus twenty seven) to get things rolling. Nonetheless, the 4.3 million jobs does leave a net negative in job creation.
By the way, you might run up against rebuttals by some of your liberal, Bammie-lovin' friends like this May 10th, 2012 argument from the DailyKOS (emphasis mine):
Here are the facts: Between October 2009 and the present, the unemployment rate has fallen from 10 percent to 8.1 percent. In October 2009, there were 129.5 million Americans with full-time jobs. Today, there are 133 million Americans with full-time jobs. That's a growth of 3.5 million jobs. Don't believe me? The numbers are here.The numbers in the link are the results of a query this clown did using the Economic Research site of the Federal reserve Bank of St Louis. I have excerpted the title and significant data:
So yes, Mitt, they have been able to create jobs. And the workforce didn't decline during that period of time, either: It grew by 544,000.
And let's not forget the number one reason why job growth hasn't been stronger: layoffs in the public sector. In the private sector alone, more than 4 million jobs have been created since October 2009. But during the same period of time, a half-million public sector jobs were lost, and the reason why those jobs were lost is that too many concessions were made to Republicans in the stimulus and because Republicans used the filibuster and their recapture of the House to block the sorts of jobs bills that would have prevented those job losses.
I call your attention to the fact that the author cherry picked October 2009 as the starting point and, looking at the data series, one can see why. The excursion from January 2009 to October 2009 was a net loss of 4,282,000 jobs. (The numbers in the data are in thousands.) That is, January 2009 employment was 133,561,000 and October's was 129,279,000. If you do the math from January 2009 through May 2012 you get 133,009,000 less 133,561,000 or a negative 552,000 jobs -- which is how much this sad sack is in the tank.Title: All Employees: Total nonfarm
Series ID: PAYEMS
Source: U.S. Department of Labor: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Release: Employment Situation
Seasonal Adjustment: Seasonally Adjusted
Frequency: Monthly
Units: Thousands of Persons
Date Range: 1939-01-01 to 2012-05-01
Last Updated: 2012-06-01 8:42 AM CDT
Notes: Handbook of Methods Establishment Survey -
(http://www.bls.gov/opub/hom/pdf/homch2.pdf)
Frequently Asked Questions - (http://stats.bls.gov:80/cps/cps_faq.htm)
2008-12-01 134379
2009-01-01 133561 -818
2009-02-01 132837 -724
2009-03-01 132038 -799
2009-04-01 131346 -692
2009-05-01 130985 -361
2009-06-01 130503 -482
2009-07-01 130164 -339
2009-08-01 129933 -231
2009-09-01 129734 -199
2009-10-01 129532 -202
2009-11-01 129490 -42
2009-12-01 129319 -171
2010-01-01 129279 -40
2010-02-01 129244 -35
2010-03-01 129433 189
2010-04-01 129672 239
2010-05-01 130188 516
2010-06-01 130021 -167
2010-07-01 129963 -58
2010-08-01 129912 -51
2010-09-01 129885 -27
2010-10-01 130105 220
2010-11-01 130226 121
2010-12-01 130346 120
2011-01-01 130456 110
2011-02-01 130676 220
2011-03-01 130922 246
2011-04-01 131173 251
2011-05-01 131227 54
2011-06-01 131311 84
2011-07-01 131407 96
2011-08-01 131492 85
2011-09-01 131694 202
2011-10-01 131806 112
2011-11-01 131963 157
2011-12-01 132186 223
2012-01-01 132461 275
2012-02-01 132720 259
2012-03-01 132863 143
2012-04-01 132940 77
2012-05-01 133009 69
Pray tell me, what's the magic of the October 2009 starting month? Didn't Obama's term start in January?
However, even if you accept the DailyKOS fool's premise that you do start in October 2010, then you would have 3,447,000 jobs created. (I do not know where he got the "workforce increased by 544,000 jobs" nonsense.) That's an average of 84,800 jobs created per month -- but it's a capricious number for the aforementioned reason of the arbitrary date range. If you calculate it based on the entire 41 months there there is a net LOSS of 13,600 jobs per month. Neither of these numbers address the fact, of course, that job creation needs to be around 150,000 or more just to take up the new entries into the work force from high school and college graduation.
So, the desperation in the Obama camp must be palpable as they prepare to pull their "all nighter" prior to the election.
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