Jobs Report

[gunns]

Unemployment at 7.9%. 171,000 jobs added.

[Vegas_Bronco]

Ouch...Short by 300,000...ive noticed the markets believe the hype.

[elsid13]

"The labor force participation rate, a key metric that measures those working and looking for jobs, edged higher to 63.8 percent after wallowing around 31-year lows for the past several months."

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/pre-election-jobs-report-shows-124021282.html

More folks back activity looking for employment, I expect that one of key reason the number edge up to 7.9% vs going down or staying at the same rate. Not great but not total disaster. More slow steady muddling progress.

[Rohirrim]

This is another way that Romney continues to mislead the American people by trying to convince them that this is just a normal recession and we should be out of it by now. Of course, Romney may believe it, since he's getting this bull**** from Glenn Hubbard.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-15/sorry-u-s-recoveries-really-aren-t-different.html

[elsid13]

This is another way that Romney continues to mislead the American people by trying to convince them that this is just a normal recession and we should be out of it by now. Of course, Romney may believe it, since he's getting this bull**** from Glenn Hubbard.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-15/sorry-u-s-recoveries-really-aren-t-different.html

very good economic study. Thanks for posting it.

[Smiling Assassin27]

At this rate of job creation, it'll take 7 more years to get to where Obama said it'd be TODAY with the stimulus.

earnings and hours worked declined..again. if the participation rate was the same as January 2009 when Obama began this failed presidency, UE rate would be over 10.5% after this jobs report.

mark it down. after the election, UE rate over 8%. average employment growth in 2011 was 156K. In 2012, it's 157k. So much for progress on the jobs front. positive spin on this report is insulting to the unemployed american worker.

worst. recovery. ever. but you already knew that, right folks?

[Smiling Assassin27]

During Reagan recovery, all lost jobs were recovered in 10 months. of course recoveries are different. in this recovery, all of 55% of all lost jobs have been recovered in 4 years. just a matter of which components of a recovery you look at.

[pricejj]

The unemployment rate is rising...even with a Zero Interest Rate Policy for the last 4 years...and $1.3T annual deficit spending?

Looks like big government policies can't create jobs after all, but we knew that already.

[L.A. BRONCOS FAN]

This is another way that Romney continues to mislead the American people by trying to convince them that this is just a normal recession and we should be out of it by now. Of course, Romney may believe it, since he's getting this bull**** from Glenn Hubbard.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-15/sorry-u-s-recoveries-really-aren-t-different.html

FTW.

[L.A. BRONCOS FAN]

The unemployment rate is rising....

And 2+2=5.

And we're at war with Eurasia. We've always been at war with Eurasia.

[Rohirrim]

During Reagan recovery, all lost jobs were recovered in 10 months. of course recoveries are different. in this recovery, all of 55% of all lost jobs have been recovered in 4 years. just a matter of which components of a recovery you look at.

Here's the facts. I'm sure you'll ignore them.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-15/sorry-u-s-recoveries-really-aren-t-different.html

[L.A. BRONCOS FAN]

Here's the facts. I'm sure you'll ignore them.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-15/sorry-u-s-recoveries-really-aren-t-different.html

L0L @ that avatar. :laugh:

Willard would have been perfect in Kurt Russell's role in "Used Cars."

[Rohirrim]

L0L @ that avatar. :laugh:

Willard would have been perfect in Kurt Russell's role in "Used Cars."

I think it captures the essence of the man. ;D

Even better would be if a dog was strapped to the roof of that car in the background.

[BroncoInferno]

During Reagan recovery, all lost jobs were recovered in 10 months. of course recoveries are different. in this recovery, all of 55% of all lost jobs have been recovered in 4 years. just a matter of which components of a recovery you look at.

The fact that you would compare the two recessions proves what a ****ing moron you are, and confirms what Ro posted right before your pitifully ignorant BS.

[razorwire77]

And 2+2=5.

And we're at war with Eurasia. We've always been at war with Eurasia.

He won't get the reference without Google. And when he does Google it, I'm sure he'll cut and paste some Breitbart linked 7th grade interpretation about Orwell the Socialist and apply it to Obama, Liberals, and the jobs report.

[ant1999e]

The unemployment rate is rising...even with a Zero Interest Rate Policy for the last 4 years...and $1.3T annual deficit spending?

Looks like big government policies can't create jobs after all, but we knew that already.

Somehow they don't see that. :hitself:

[ant1999e]

"-the number of unemployed persons remained essentially unchanged at 12.3 million...
-Unemployment rate for blacks increased to 14.3 percent.
-Long term unemployed (27 weeks or more) was little changed at 5.0 million (40.6 percent of the unemployed.
-Ed Morrissey of HotAir.com points out that when Obama first took office, the U-6 rate was at 14.2 percent, and six months ago it was at 14.5 percent, so what we’re seeing is very stagnant unemployment. The Obama Administration originally predicted that the unemployment rate would be at 5.2 percent at this point in the year, but at 7.9 percent, you can see they were slightly way off."

[L.A. BRONCOS FAN]

Somehow they don't see that. :hitself:

They don't have the special Fox glasses like you and the rest of the right-wing brain trust.

[Rohirrim]

"-the number of unemployed persons remained essentially unchanged at 12.3 million...
-Unemployment rate for blacks increased to 14.3 percent.
-Long term unemployed (27 weeks or more) was little changed at 5.0 million (40.6 percent of the unemployed.
-Ed Morrissey of HotAir.com points out that when Obama first took office, the U-6 rate was at 14.2 percent, and six months ago it was at 14.5 percent, so what we’re seeing is very stagnant unemployment. The Obama Administration originally predicted that the unemployment rate would be at 5.2 percent at this point in the year, but at 7.9 percent, you can see they were slightly way off."

Like the paper I posted above points out, it will take ten years to come out of this kind of recession. It has little to do with who is president, unless you put one in who decides to go back to the nutjob policies that got us into this mess to begin with.

[ant1999e]

Like the paper I posted above points out, it will take ten years to come out of this kind of recession. It has little to do with who is president, unless you put one in who decides to go back to the nutjob policies that got us into this mess to begin with.

So tell me then, was Obama lying or did he just not know what he was talking about when he said the stimulus would keep unemployment low?

[pricejj]

Like the paper I posted above points out, it will take ten years to come out of this kind of recession. It has little to do with who is president, unless you put one in who decides to go back to the nutjob policies that got us into this mess to begin with.

It has a lot to do with unemployment, and falling incomes. Incomes have fallen roughly $5000 since Obama has been in office.
http://s3.amazonaws.com/dk-production/images/4809/large/median_household_income_june_2012.jpeg?1346606845

[Rohirrim]

So tell me then, was Obama lying or did he just not know what he was talking about when he said the stimulus would keep unemployment low?

My guess would be that he never studied economics, knew very little about it (like the majority of politicians), and assumed this recession would be like all other recessions. No doubt he had guys like Larry Summers feeding him those figures.

[Rohirrim]

It has a lot to do with unemployment, and falling incomes. Incomes have fallen roughly $5000 since Obama has been in office.
http://s3.amazonaws.com/dk-production/images/4809/large/median_household_income_june_2012.jpeg?1346606845

Incomes of the middle class have been stagnant, or declining, for decades. I don't doubt that they are worse now, since we are suffering under the worst recession in 80 years. What I don't understand is how the Right thinks it is legitimate to blame this on the president of the opposing party while completely ignoring their own broad and grievous culpability in making this mess.

[ant1999e]

More folks back activity looking for employment, I expect that one of key reason the number edge up to 7.9% vs going down or staying at the same rate.

And the lack of activity is one of the key reasons for the recent drop in numbers. So imagine what the unemployment numbers are really like.

[Pony Boy]

With the latest jobs report, it is now the case that under Obama, "Food Stamp Growth is 75 Times Greater Than Job Creation".

"For Every Person Added to Jobs Rolls Since January 2009, 75 People Added To Food Stamp Rolls."

[Rohirrim]

With the latest jobs report, it is now the case that under Obama, "Food Stamp Growth is 75 Times Greater Than Job Creation".

"For Every Person Added to Jobs Rolls Since January 2009, 75 People Added To Food Stamp Rolls."

And the solution is to put George Bush's policies back in the WH? That's like saying, "Well, that old fox knows a hell of a lot about chickens. Let's put him in charge of the coop."

[TonyR]

The fact that you would compare the two recessions proves what a ****ing moron you are, and confirms what Ro posted right before your pitifully ignorant BS.

He really is a moron, isn't he?!? What's frustrating is that, like many of the righties who post here regularly, you can tell he has the intelligence to understand this but for whatever reason he just won't use it.

[TonyR]

My guess would be that he never studied economics, knew very little about it (like the majority of politicians), and assumed this recession would be like all other recessions. No doubt he had guys like Larry Summers feeding him those figures.

Almost everybody got this stuff wrong. For example, even the best and the brightest at the big banks massively underestimated how bad the housing crisis was. Do you think BofA would've bought Countrywide if they know how bad things would get and that it would cost them over $20 billion before all was said and done? People want to keep pinning all this on Obama, and pointing out how his administration underestimated how bad things were and were overly optimistic about the recovery. But they fail to notice that almost everybody else did, too. And then of course nobody will acknowledge how much worse things might be if not for the bailouts and stimulus, regardless of how badly they may or may not have been handled.

(also want to point out that I know I'm preaching to the choir in responding to your post, Roh...)

[TonyR]

Ouch...Short by 300,000...

Agree it's not enough, but expectations were actually surpassed. Which helps explain the market reaction.

[cutthemdown]

"The labor force participation rate, a key metric that measures those working and looking for jobs, edged higher to 63.8 percent after wallowing around 31-year lows for the past several months."

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/pre-election-jobs-report-shows-124021282.html

More folks back activity looking for employment, I expect that one of key reason the number edge up to 7.9% vs going down or staying at the same rate. Not great but not total disaster. More slow steady muddling progress.

It is really bad. This long into a recovery we should be adding jobs at a rate to move unemployment down. Obama can barely add enough to avoid this being another recession. Seriously we are like 1% growth away from going the wrong direction.

Country needs a change.

[cutthemdown]

its the govt fault we had the housing mess. They gave out loans to banks at interest rates way too low. Then banks then loaned money out for housing way too easily. Both parties to blame for that but somehow its all GWB fault.

[cutthemdown]

My guess would be that he never studied economics, knew very little about it (like the majority of politicians), and assumed this recession would be like all other recessions. No doubt he had guys like Larry Summers feeding him those figures.

What happened is GWB was so unpopular and Democrat would have won that election. So what do dems do? Put someone up with experience, that has accomplished many things in his life? NO! They put up a lawyer with no trial experience, an elitist who spent all his time at a university or working for the govt. Just someone who had no idea about the private sector.

I work with attorney's and they all make fun of him for going to law school at harvard but being a joke of an attorney. How many cases do you think he won?

At harvard he avoided all the things most law review students particiapte in. Like debates and mock trials. He's a fraud.

[Pseudofool]

With the latest jobs report, it is now the case that under Obama, "Food Stamp Growth is 75 Times Greater Than Job Creation".

"For Every Person Added to Jobs Rolls Since January 2009, 75 People Added To Food Stamp Rolls."

3.5 mil new jobs since 2009 multiplied by 75 equals more than 267 million, nearly the population of this country. I call phooey.

It's called arithmetic. Do the math before you believe statistics that support your ideological view. Anything less is lazy.

[L.A. BRONCOS FAN]

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/643910_549896915027861_328863072_n.jpg

[L.A. BRONCOS FAN]

He really is a moron, isn't he?!? What's frustrating is that, like many of the righties who post here regularly, you can tell he has the intelligence to understand this but for whatever reason he just won't use it.

That's because their emotional attachment/commitment to an ideology trumps reason, facts, truth, and logic.

[Vegas_Bronco]

Incomes of the middle class have been stagnant, or declining, for decades. I don't doubt that they are worse now, since we are suffering under the worst recession in 80 years. What I don't understand is how the Right thinks it is legitimate to blame this on the president of the opposing party while completely ignoring their own broad and grievous culpability in making this mess.

You fail to understand that there are more pple in the middle class than ever before...and it has grown by an accelerated rate over the past 5-6 years. This will be the worst recession/depression ever before it is over....we could see another new dip to an all new low. This isn't a right or left issue really - it's a of greater concern than that. Don't sling stones on the right when it was the Clinton's left who got us going at an accelerated decline. Think macro scale.

[Vegas_Bronco]

That's because their emotional attachment/commitment to an ideology trumps reason, facts, truth, and logic.

LOL emotion runs through us all as humans...its what we do with it that defines our character. I'd say your character is undermedicated. You sure your not a Raiders fan?

[L.A. BRONCOS FAN]

LOL emotion runs through us all as humans...its what we do with it that defines our character. I'd say your character is undermedicated. You sure your not a Raiders fan?

Thanks for making my point for me. :wave:

[Vegas_Bronco]

Thanks for making my point for me. :wave:

bait switch :strong:...predict his next actions...anyone, anyone?

Did you vote for Obama or Clinton in the primaries?

[L.A. BRONCOS FAN]

bait switch :strong:...predict his next actions...anyone, anyone?

Did you vote for Obama or Clinton in the primaries?

Spoken like a master baiter.

Did you vote for Dumbya twice?

[Meck77]

Then there is reality.

http://portalseven.com/employment/unemployment_rate_u6.jsp

[Kaylore]

Trillions of dollars later, unemployment is higher than when Obama took office.

Obama's answer? Clean energy and teachers.


The guy has no clue whatsoever. He did what all his minions from academia told him to do. It didn't work and they left the white house staff. Now he's back to wind farms and class sizes.

What a freaking joke.

[Kaylore]

And the solution is to put George Bush's policies back in the WH? That's like saying, "Well, that old fox knows a hell of a lot about chickens. Let's put him in charge of the coop."

That's all you have. "Well Bush sucked!"

It is clear your entire group is totally out of ideas from top to bottom. No answers, just finger pointing.

We need people who are optimistic with clear answers. We need someone who wants to try something new who has experience in business and government. Not a guy that reads a teleprompter.

[Irish Stout]

Trillions of dollars later, unemployment is higher than when Obama took office.

Obama's answer? Clean energy and teachers.


The guy has no clue whatsoever. He did what all his minions from academia told him to do. It didn't work and they left the white house staff. Now he's back to wind farms and class sizes.

What a freaking joke.

What's Romney's plan? Theres a magic 12 million jobs he is going to create from what?

[Kid A]

Trillions of dollars later, unemployment is higher than when Obama took office.

Obama's answer? Clean energy and teachers.


The guy has no clue whatsoever. He did what all his minions from academia told him to do. It didn't work and they left the white house staff. Now he's back to wind farms and class sizes.

What a freaking joke.

Unemployment is higher than the day he took office. The fact of his being sworn in obviously had no effect on the economy. What did have an influence was policy he enacted soon after being in office. Unemployment has been reversing course since almost exactly after the stimulus was passed (http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/4edfe187eab8eaab3600001b/chart-unemployment-rate-and-jobs-added-during-the-great-recession-dec-7-2011.jpg). And green energy is outpacing most of the economy (http://www.solarfeeds.com/report-solar-job-growth-outpaces-all-economic-sectors/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+solarfeed+%28Solar+Feeds%29) in this growth.

The truth is, no matter who is elected, they are going to be handed an economy that is on the rebound. Romney talks about creating 12 million new jobs, but that's likely coming to whoever wins...because Obama took action early on with the stimulus to keep the economy from going into the abyss. His handling of the economy was far from perfect but it went well beyond what McCain, who was clearly lost and out of his depth the moment the economy crashed, likely would have enacted (considering Obama's stimulus was considered aggressive at the time—before we knew the true magnitude of the recession—it is truly frightening to think where we would be under a McCain presidency). It would be a bitter irony for Romney to reap the political benefit of a recovering economy after opposing the measures that got us here.

The other thing you are missing here when you laugh off "clean energy and teachers" is that when attacking a true recession, which will linger for years, you aim part of the stimulus at imminent job loss (as the Recover Act did in helping underfunded states keep from laying off thousands of people by giving them money right away) and another part at longer term investments (energy, education).

If you have a clear idea of how a Republican executive branch would have approached 09-12 differently and more successfully, please let me know. Because from where I sit, we are in much better shape than the nations (Greece, Spain) that enacted austerity in response to this crisis.

[Mecklomaniac]

Unemployment is higher than the day he took office. The fact of his being sworn in obviously had no effect on the economy. What did have an influence was policy he enacted soon after being in office. Unemployment has been reversing course since almost exactly after the stimulus was passed (http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/4edfe187eab8eaab3600001b/chart-unemployment-rate-and-jobs-added-during-the-great-recession-dec-7-2011.jpg). And green energy is outpacing most of the economy (http://www.solarfeeds.com/report-solar-job-growth-outpaces-all-economic-sectors/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+solarfeed+%28Solar+Feeds%29) in this growth.

The truth is, no matter who is elected, they are going to be handed an economy that is on the rebound. Romney talks about creating 12 million new jobs, but that's likely coming to whoever wins...because Obama took action early on with the stimulus to keep the economy from going into the abyss. His handling of the economy was far from perfect but it went well beyond what McCain, who was clearly lost and out of his depth the moment the economy crashed, likely would have enacted (considering Obama's stimulus was considered aggressive at the time—before we knew the true magnitude of the recession—it is truly frightening to think where we would be under a McCain presidency). It would be a bitter irony for Romney to reap the political benefit of a recovering economy after opposing the measures that got us here.

The other thing you are missing here when you laugh off "clean energy and teachers" is that when attacking a true recession, which will linger for years, you aim part of the stimulus at imminent job loss (as the Recover Act did in helping underfunded states keep from laying off thousands of people by giving them money right away) and another part at longer term investments (energy, education).

If you have a clear idea of how a Republican executive branch would have approached 09-12 differently and more successfully, please let me know. Because from where I sit, we are in much better shape than the nations (Greece, Spain) that enacted austerity in response to this crisis.

http://www.google.com/url?source=imglanding&ct=img&q=http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/5093d0c86bb3f7760c00000d-889-559/romer-bernstein-chart.png?maxX=597&maxY=375&sa=X&ei=w56UUMHcKMzuiQLmkIDABw&ved=0CAsQ8wc4GQ&usg=AFQjCNFttd1qZbusYlCocfCnsrABQTuFQQ

[Dukes]

http://www.google.com/url?source=imglanding&ct=img&q=http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/5093d0c86bb3f7760c00000d-889-559/romer-bernstein-chart.png?maxX=597&maxY=375&sa=X&ei=w56UUMHcKMzuiQLmkIDABw&ved=0CAsQ8wc4GQ&usg=AFQjCNFttd1qZbusYlCocfCnsrABQTuFQQ

Amazing how many "jobs" you can create when you print your own money. How many Trillion in debt are we now?

[TheElusiveKyleOrton]

At this rate of job creation, it'll take 7 more years to get to where Obama said it'd be TODAY with the stimulus.

earnings and hours worked declined..again. if the participation rate was the same as January 2009 when Obama began this failed presidency, UE rate would be over 10.5% after this jobs report.

mark it down. after the election, UE rate over 8%. average employment growth in 2011 was 156K. In 2012, it's 157k. So much for progress on the jobs front. positive spin on this report is insulting to the unemployed american worker.

worst. recovery. ever. but you already knew that, right folks?

What a shame, to waste all that hard work from the GOP House in trying to pass job legislation.

What's that?? Oh, they're just trying to repeal Obamacare again?

Smh.

[Kaylore]

The stimulus was mostly pork. That is one of the many missteps this amateur president made. Even many left wing pundits admit it as much.

I love the hypocrisy in this thread - for four years the media has been downplaying the recession. If a Republican was a president we'd see the daily homelessness articles. Instead it was the media trying to make the recession cute with "helpful tips to save money" and "ways to get a second interview" all the while just throwing money at the problem and lifting zombie banks and poorly run auto-companies' bills onto the tax-payer and our grandchildren get to shoulder the interest.

Now Romney is being accused of "downplaying the recession" by people in this thread. It's absolutely hysterical.

[IHaveALight]

That's all you have. "Well Bush sucked!"

It is clear your entire group is totally out of ideas from top to bottom. No answers, just finger pointing.

We need people who are optimistic with clear answers. We need someone who wants to try something new who has experience in business and government. Not a guy that reads a teleprompter.

Actually what we need is to abandon the two party system that is controlled by corporate lobbying and to end the fed.

Unless you're a corporation, voting for democrat or republican is a vote for more recession and more oppression.

[L.A. BRONCOS FAN]

Unemployment is higher than the day he took office. The fact of his being sworn in obviously had no effect on the economy. What did have an influence was policy he enacted soon after being in office. Unemployment has been reversing course since almost exactly after the stimulus was passed (http://static6.businessinsider.com/image/4edfe187eab8eaab3600001b/chart-unemployment-rate-and-jobs-added-during-the-great-recession-dec-7-2011.jpg). And green energy is outpacing most of the economy (http://www.solarfeeds.com/report-solar-job-growth-outpaces-all-economic-sectors/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+solarfeed+%28Solar+Feeds%29) in this growth.

The truth is, no matter who is elected, they are going to be handed an economy that is on the rebound. Romney talks about creating 12 million new jobs, but that's likely coming to whoever wins...because Obama took action early on with the stimulus to keep the economy from going into the abyss. His handling of the economy was far from perfect but it went well beyond what McCain, who was clearly lost and out of his depth the moment the economy crashed, likely would have enacted (considering Obama's stimulus was considered aggressive at the time—before we knew the true magnitude of the recession—it is truly frightening to think where we would be under a McCain presidency). It would be a bitter irony for Romney to reap the political benefit of a recovering economy after opposing the measures that got us here.

The other thing you are missing here when you laugh off "clean energy and teachers" is that when attacking a true recession, which will linger for years, you aim part of the stimulus at imminent job loss (as the Recover Act did in helping underfunded states keep from laying off thousands of people by giving them money right away) and another part at longer term investments (energy, education).

If you have a clear idea of how a Republican executive branch would have approached 09-12 differently and more successfully, please let me know. Because from where I sit, we are in much better shape than the nations (Greece, Spain) that enacted austerity in response to this crisis.

There you go confusing Fox News lemmings with facts and logic again. ;)

[Kid A]

The stimulus was mostly pork. That is one of the many missteps this amateur president made. Even many left wing pundits admit it as much.

First of all, you started by blaming Obama for not instantly stopping all job loss the second he took office ("unemployment was lower when he took office!"). When it is pointed out to you that when he passed the stimulus soon after the unemployment started to reverse (http://www.pierrebastien.net/wp-content/uploads/private-sector-job-growth-stimulus-chart.jpg), you just jump to the "there's a lot of pork in it" and "the media goes too easy on the President." I have seen nothing but constant coverage about how bad the economy is. (The media has done a terrible job of explaining what was in the stimulus; they've certainly done no favors to put it a positive light.)

Instead, show me an example of this immense "pork" and waste. Show me you have any understanding of what was in the bill, outside the GOP talking point of "stimulus bad."

Time reporter Michael Grunwald wrote a 450 pg investigation into the history and content of the bill. Here's a chart:

http://i47.tinypic.com/oji2p4.jpg

Most of the bill was tax cuts for 95% of workers, emergency relief to states to prevent layoffs or cuts in service, additional aid to the unemployed. And, what I assume you are labeling as pure pork, are the longer term investments:

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/interrogation/2012/08/the_new_new_deal_a_book_argues_that_president_obam a_s_stimulus_has_been_an_astonishing_success.singl e.html#pagebreak_anchor_2

The stimulus included $27 billion to computerize our pen-and-paper health care system, which should reduce redundant tests, dangerous drug interactions, and fatalities caused by doctors with chicken-scratch handwriting. It doubled our renewable power generation; it increased solar installations over 600 percent; it essentially launched our transition to a low-carbon economy.

It provided a new model for government spending—with unprecedented transparency, unprecedented scrutiny, and unprecedented competition for the cash. Experts predicted that as much as 5 percent of it would be lost to fraud, but so far, investigators have documented less than $10 million in losses, about 0.001 percent.

Despite all the controversy over the lack of shovel-ready projects, the Obama administration has met every spending deadline, and it’s kept costs so far under budget that it’s been able to finance over 3,000 additional projects with the savings. But the media coverage of the stimulus was almost exclusively gotcha stuff, usually without a real gotcha. And when the media did notice long-term investments in the stimulus, like Race to the Top or clean-energy research, it rarely mentioned the stimulus connection.

Except, of course, when it was noticing Solyndra. After a year of screaming headlines about crony capitalism and shady deals, even Republican investigators have admitted there’s no evidence of any political interference or other wrongdoing. A slew of independent reviews—including one led by John McCain’s finance chairman—have concluded that the clean-energy loan program is working well. Everyone knew that some of its loans would go bad. But the Solyndra scandal—which isn’t even a scandal—is probably the best-known product of the stimulus.


The thing is, yes it wasn't a bill a Republican would have written, but on the whole, the stuff in it was mostly stuff Republicans also liked...until the guy they swore to never cooperate with (their #1 priority above all others!) had his name associated with those ideas:

I don’t think my book portrays the Republicans as “vicious,” but I do show—thanks to a lot of in-depth interviews with GOP sources—how they plotted to obstruct Obama before he even took office. I show how the stimulus was chock full of stuff they claimed to support until Jan. 20, 2009—not just things like health IT and the smart grid and energy efficiency and scientific research, but the very idea of Keynesian stimulus. Every presidential candidate in 2008 proposed a stimulus package, and Mitt Romney’s was the largest. So I do spend a fair amount of time chronicling Republican stimulus hypocrisies...In general, I’d have to say my reporting backs up the Norm Ornstein-Thomas Mann thesis that the Republicans have gone off the policy deep end—denying global warming, denying Keynesian economics (except when it comes to business tax cuts and defense spending!), trashing Obama’s government takeover of health care and also his Medicare cuts, drumming stimulus supporters like Crist and Specter out of the party. Then again, one Republican who comes off pretty well is Mark Sanford, a rare voice of honest small-government conservatism in the party.

Sorry, this ran a little long, but I seriously want to see if you have put any thought into this. There are educated critiques to be made, but everything you're saying sounds reactionary to me.

[TonyR]

The stimulus was mostly pork.

About 1/3 of it was tax cuts, fyi.



...for four years the media has been downplaying the recession.

LOL What planet have you been living on?