From a syndicated news column by Donald Lambro as printed in the Martinsville (VA) Bulletin – Friday, June 12th.
“STIMULUS NOT HELPING”
Nearly five months into Barack Obama’s presidency, his stimulus program is failing to produce the jobs he promised. And voters are souring on his big-spending, deficit-driven policies.
A nationwide Rasmussen poll found that nearly half of Americans (45 %) want the administration to stop spending the remaining bulk of the $787 billion economic-stimulus fund – doubting that the money will create any new jobs. Just 36% want the spending to continue while 20% say they’re not sure.
With the unemployment rate spiraling up to 9.4% in May and this year’s budget deficit speeding well past 1.8 trillion, Americans are turning against Obama’s handling of the economy and the unprecedented rise in government spending.
Last week, the Gallup Poll said that, while 55% of their sampling approved of the way he (Obama)* was handling the economy, 42% disapproved – up sharply from 30% in February.
Americans are growing even more disgusted with the way Obama is dealing with the budget deficit – with 46% approving and48% disapproving. His numbers are worse on the issue of “controlling federal spending” – 45% approve but for the first time, a 51% majority disapproves.
These polling numbers were reinforced by a number of economists on the left and the right who say his infrastructure stimulus has been an abject failure from the beginning.
“Despite administration claims, the stimulus package has created or saved few jobs,” said University of Maryland economist Peter Morici. “The stimulus package was poorly conceived. Not enough is devoted to hard projects, and little of the spending will stimulate late permanent growth,” Morici said last week in his latest economic analysis.
The same view can be found at the conservative Hoover Institute on the Stanford University campus.
“The end of the recession is still months away but it is increasingly clear the stimulus package was a mistake. To date, it has had no identifiable beneficial impact on the economy,” Stanford economist John Cogan told me.
“More importantly*, its impact later this year and next will be decidedly negative because the funds required to finance the package’s spending will be drawn from private-sector resources that are needed to fuel the recovery. At this juncture, Congress would be wise to repeal the remainder of the program,” Cogan said.
That idea may be gaining support among Republicans on Capitol Hill whose “stop the spending” plea is resonating with millions of Americans angered by the Obama Democrats’ spending spree on make-work, “pork-barrel” projects that will enlarge the federal deficit but employ few workers. (Not all the projects are “make-work” and “pork-barrel” but I’d certainly say that a large percentage of those projects are EXACTLY THAT!)*
The economy is clearly showing signs of life that is expected to bear more growth in the third and fourth quarters* – even though only $44 billion of the stimulus money has been spent so far. That begs the question: Why spend 70% of the money next year when the recovery will be fully under way?
“If there is any way we can ‘claw’ some of it back, it makes a whole lot of sense to reduce our debt than spending it as quickly as we can,” said Republican Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina.
The chances of that idea being adopted in this Democratic Congress are slim to none because much - if not the majority* - of the money isn’t for any short-term stimulus – although it was originally sold as that. It is part and parcel of the Democrats’ agenda to expand hundreds of federal grant programs for their favored special-interest constituencies.
We are fast approaching the point where it will be time to “pull the plug” on what has turned out to be a “non-stimulus” spending program that has done more harm than good.
My comments - I think you heard it here first – the stimulus package was doomed from the start. All this money would have been better spent helping the long-term unemployed.
- Distributed by the Newspaper Enterprise Association
*(All italics are mine.)
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
“Tough Job Market Beginning to Show Glimpses of Stability”(???)
Experts are remaining cautious though – saying serious hiring increases may not start until 2010
-from the Associated Press as printed in the ROANOKE (VA) TIMES
Washington – Signs of stabilization in the job market are emerging – according to several private surveys – as restaurants, mortage services, and health centers step up hiring.
About a quarter of manufacturing companies and more than 40% of service-sector employers plan to hire in June – the highest totals in six months according to a survey by the Society for Human Resource Management. Still, the figures are substantially lower than they were a year ago. Service-sector jobs are not what the economy needs to improve in the manner desired – the country needs MANUFACTURING-SECTOR JOBS – AND PLENTY OF THEM!)
And the Conference Board said last week that online job ads rose by 250,000 in May to 3.37 million – the first increase since October and the largest jump since October 2006. (But be WARNED – Employers any distance from you are looking mostly for LOCAL CANDIDATES – and there won’t be very many who will pay relocation expenses unless you are a degreed professional.)
Still, economists caution that jobs will remain scarce for months because mos employers are likely to wait until the economy grows at a healthy pace before they feel confident enough to add workers. (Sort of leaving themselves a “back-door escape hatch” here, aren’t they?)That might not happen until well into 2010 – many economists say.
The nation’s jobless rate jumped to a 25-year high of 9.4% in May – a stark reminder of the difficulty unemployed workers are having finding jobs.(Heck! I can find them – but I can’t get to them! So much for the government’s stimulus plan working for me!) The Federal Reserve expects unemployment to remain elevated until 2011. (Aren’t these the MONEY guys?)
Meanwhile, more people are seeking fewer jobs. A Labor Department report Tuesday showed that total job openings fell in April to 2.5 million from 2.6 million the previous month. With 13.7 million people unemployed that month, that meant that on average more than five people were* competing for each job opening. That’s up sharply from fewer than two people per job a year ago.
Other private surveys reflect that weak outlook. Manpower Inc. said Tuesday that its quarterly employment outlook survey found only 15% of respondents planned to increase hiring in the third quarter this year. About 13% expect to cut staffing, and 67% plan no changes. That’s little changed from the current quarter.
The Labor Department’s report Tuesday - known as Job Openings and Labor Turnover - did show some pockets of growth for the first time in months : Openings for lawyers, accountants and other professional business services rose by 0,000 to 458,000. (I guess that those are the “jobs” created by the stimulus spending about which Vice-President Biden has been commenting lately.)
(*edited by me – it didn’t “sound” correct when I read it in the article. So sue me! Parantheses and italics are mine!)
Experts are remaining cautious though – saying serious hiring increases may not start until 2010
-from the Associated Press as printed in the ROANOKE (VA) TIMES
Washington – Signs of stabilization in the job market are emerging – according to several private surveys – as restaurants, mortage services, and health centers step up hiring.
About a quarter of manufacturing companies and more than 40% of service-sector employers plan to hire in June – the highest totals in six months according to a survey by the Society for Human Resource Management. Still, the figures are substantially lower than they were a year ago. Service-sector jobs are not what the economy needs to improve in the manner desired – the country needs MANUFACTURING-SECTOR JOBS – AND PLENTY OF THEM!)
And the Conference Board said last week that online job ads rose by 250,000 in May to 3.37 million – the first increase since October and the largest jump since October 2006. (But be WARNED – Employers any distance from you are looking mostly for LOCAL CANDIDATES – and there won’t be very many who will pay relocation expenses unless you are a degreed professional.)
Still, economists caution that jobs will remain scarce for months because mos employers are likely to wait until the economy grows at a healthy pace before they feel confident enough to add workers. (Sort of leaving themselves a “back-door escape hatch” here, aren’t they?)That might not happen until well into 2010 – many economists say.
The nation’s jobless rate jumped to a 25-year high of 9.4% in May – a stark reminder of the difficulty unemployed workers are having finding jobs.(Heck! I can find them – but I can’t get to them! So much for the government’s stimulus plan working for me!) The Federal Reserve expects unemployment to remain elevated until 2011. (Aren’t these the MONEY guys?)
Meanwhile, more people are seeking fewer jobs. A Labor Department report Tuesday showed that total job openings fell in April to 2.5 million from 2.6 million the previous month. With 13.7 million people unemployed that month, that meant that on average more than five people were* competing for each job opening. That’s up sharply from fewer than two people per job a year ago.
Other private surveys reflect that weak outlook. Manpower Inc. said Tuesday that its quarterly employment outlook survey found only 15% of respondents planned to increase hiring in the third quarter this year. About 13% expect to cut staffing, and 67% plan no changes. That’s little changed from the current quarter.
The Labor Department’s report Tuesday - known as Job Openings and Labor Turnover - did show some pockets of growth for the first time in months : Openings for lawyers, accountants and other professional business services rose by 0,000 to 458,000. (I guess that those are the “jobs” created by the stimulus spending about which Vice-President Biden has been commenting lately.)
(*edited by me – it didn’t “sound” correct when I read it in the article. So sue me! Parantheses and italics are mine!)
Biden says “guesses” on stimulus were inaccurate
Washington, DC – Vice-President Joe Biden said Sunday that “everyone guessed wrong” on the impact of the economic stimulus but he defended the administration’s spending designed to combat joblessness.
Biden said inaccuracies in unemployment predictions shouldn’t undercut the White House’s support of the $787-billion ecomnomic plan that has not met the expectations of President Obama’s team. Instead, the vice-president urged skeptics to look at teachers who kept their classroom assignments and police officers who kept their beats because of financial assistance from Washington. (These jobs were “saved” by the stimulus spending- not created!)
“The bottom line is that jobs are being created that would have not been there before,” Biden said. But they are not coming at the pace first estimated. (About what jobs is he talking? There haven’t been any jobs ANYWHERE of which I’m aware that have been CREATED by the stimulus spending!)
Just ten days before taking office, Obama’s top economic advisers released a report predicting unemployment would remain at 8% or below throughout this year if an economic stimulus plan won congressional approval. Yet the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that unemployment in May rose to 9.4%. (I guess that's what you get - electing a forensic debater president instead of an economist.)
- from an Assocatied Press wire report as printed in the Roanoke (VA) Times Monday, June 15th.
(Italics and parentheses are mine.)
Washington, DC – Vice-President Joe Biden said Sunday that “everyone guessed wrong” on the impact of the economic stimulus but he defended the administration’s spending designed to combat joblessness.
Biden said inaccuracies in unemployment predictions shouldn’t undercut the White House’s support of the $787-billion ecomnomic plan that has not met the expectations of President Obama’s team. Instead, the vice-president urged skeptics to look at teachers who kept their classroom assignments and police officers who kept their beats because of financial assistance from Washington. (These jobs were “saved” by the stimulus spending- not created!)
“The bottom line is that jobs are being created that would have not been there before,” Biden said. But they are not coming at the pace first estimated. (About what jobs is he talking? There haven’t been any jobs ANYWHERE of which I’m aware that have been CREATED by the stimulus spending!)
Just ten days before taking office, Obama’s top economic advisers released a report predicting unemployment would remain at 8% or below throughout this year if an economic stimulus plan won congressional approval. Yet the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that unemployment in May rose to 9.4%. (I guess that's what you get - electing a forensic debater president instead of an economist.)
- from an Assocatied Press wire report as printed in the Roanoke (VA) Times Monday, June 15th.
(Italics and parentheses are mine.)
“JOBLESS BENEFITS MARK 25-YEAR HIGH”
The number of people receiving unemployment benefits has set another record – a development likely to weigh on consumer spending and slow the economy’s recovery. (I tell you one person who’s NOT getting any benefits AT ALL – ME! I didn’t even get any stimulus funds! And I’ve been unemployed for 7 years! )
While retail sales rose in May, the increase resulted largely from a spike in gasoline prices and higher auto sales – according to a report from the Commerce Department. Overall, the retail report Thursday showed consumers remain reluctant to spend, economists said.
“The jobs picture continues to be one of the most significant challenges to the economy,” said Dean Curnutt, president of Marco Risks Advisors, a financial strategy firm. “It’s very difficult to be bullish on consumer spending when you’re looking at unemployment rates that are so high.”
The number of people continuing to claim benefits exceeded 6.8 million in the week ending May 30th, the Labor Department said Thursday. That was the 19th straight weekly record – after a drop last week was revised to an increase.
And that doesn’t include about 2.4 million people receiving benefits through federal and state extended programs – which can add up to 53 weeks to the 26 weeks provided by most states. That means about 8.5 million received unemployment insurance in the week ending May 23rd – the latest data available – which is triple the total of a year ago. (Funny, I thought that 6.8 and 2.4 added up to 9.2 – guess I can’t add.)
The unemployment rate jumped to 9.4% in May – a 25-year high – as employers cut 345,000 jobs. Some economists predict the rate could near 11% by the middle of next year.
More encouraging was a drop in initial jobless claims to a seasonally-adjusted 601,000 last week – which was below analysts’ expectations - and the lowest since January.
New jobless claims are a measure of the pace of layoffs and are seen as a timely – if volatile – indicator of the economy’s health.
-from an Associated Press wire release as printed in the Martinsville (VA) Bulletin Friday, June 12th.
(Parantheses and italics – and words in BOLD highlights – are mine.)
The number of people receiving unemployment benefits has set another record – a development likely to weigh on consumer spending and slow the economy’s recovery. (I tell you one person who’s NOT getting any benefits AT ALL – ME! I didn’t even get any stimulus funds! And I’ve been unemployed for 7 years! )
While retail sales rose in May, the increase resulted largely from a spike in gasoline prices and higher auto sales – according to a report from the Commerce Department. Overall, the retail report Thursday showed consumers remain reluctant to spend, economists said.
“The jobs picture continues to be one of the most significant challenges to the economy,” said Dean Curnutt, president of Marco Risks Advisors, a financial strategy firm. “It’s very difficult to be bullish on consumer spending when you’re looking at unemployment rates that are so high.”
The number of people continuing to claim benefits exceeded 6.8 million in the week ending May 30th, the Labor Department said Thursday. That was the 19th straight weekly record – after a drop last week was revised to an increase.
And that doesn’t include about 2.4 million people receiving benefits through federal and state extended programs – which can add up to 53 weeks to the 26 weeks provided by most states. That means about 8.5 million received unemployment insurance in the week ending May 23rd – the latest data available – which is triple the total of a year ago. (Funny, I thought that 6.8 and 2.4 added up to 9.2 – guess I can’t add.)
The unemployment rate jumped to 9.4% in May – a 25-year high – as employers cut 345,000 jobs. Some economists predict the rate could near 11% by the middle of next year.
More encouraging was a drop in initial jobless claims to a seasonally-adjusted 601,000 last week – which was below analysts’ expectations - and the lowest since January.
New jobless claims are a measure of the pace of layoffs and are seen as a timely – if volatile – indicator of the economy’s health.
-from an Associated Press wire release as printed in the Martinsville (VA) Bulletin Friday, June 12th.
(Parantheses and italics – and words in BOLD highlights – are mine.)
Saturday, June 13, 2009
From a syndicated news column by Donald Lambro as printed in the Martinsville(VA) Bulletin – Friday, June 12th.
“STIMULUS NOT HELPING”
Nearly five months into Barack Obama’s presidency, his stimulus program is failing to produce the jobs he promised. And voters are souring on his big-spending, deficit-driven policies.
A nationwide Rasmussen poll found that nearly half of Americans (45 %) want the administration to stop spending the remaining bulk of the $787 billion economic-stimulus fund – doubting that the money will create any new jobs. Just 36% want the spending to continue while 20% say they’re not sure.
With the unemployment rate spiraling up to 9.4% in May and this year’s budget deficit speeding well past 1.8 trillion, Americans are turning against Obama’s handling of the economy and the unprecedented rise in government spending.
Last week, the Gallup Poll said that, while 55% of their sampling approved of the way he (Obama)* was handling the economy, 42% disapproved – up sharply from 30% in February.
Americans are growing even more disgusted with the way Obama is dealing with the budget deficit – with 46% approving and48% disapproving. His numbers are worse on the issue of “controlling federal spending” – 45% approve but for the first time, a 51% majority disapproves.
These polling numbers were reinforced by a number of economists on the left and the right who say his infrastructure stimulus has been an abject failure from the beginning.
“Despite administration claims, the stimulus package has created or saved few jobs,” said University of Maryland economist Peter Morici. “The stimulus package was poorly conceived. Not enough is devoted to hard projects, and little of the spending will stimulate late permanent growth,” Morici said last week in his latest economic analysis.
The same view can be found at the conservative Hoover Institute on the Stanford University campus.
“The end of the recession is still months away but it is increasingly clear the stimulus package was a mistake. To date, it has had no identifiable beneficial impact on the economy,” Stanford economist John Cogan told me.
“More importantly*, its impact later this year and next will be decidedly negative because the funds required to finance the package’s spending will be drawn from private-sector resources that are needed to fuel the recovery. At this juncture, Congress would be wise to repeal the remainder of the program,” Cogan said.
That idea may be gaining support among Republicans on Capitol Hill whose “stop the spending” plea is resonating with millions of Americans angered by the Obama Democrats’ spending spree on make-work, “pork-barrel” projects that will enlarge the federal deficit but employ few workers.
Believe it or not, this is pretty much what I've been saying all along. I wholeheartedly believe the public's money would have been much better spent by giving a million dollars to each unemployed citizen back in February 2009.
“STIMULUS NOT HELPING”
Nearly five months into Barack Obama’s presidency, his stimulus program is failing to produce the jobs he promised. And voters are souring on his big-spending, deficit-driven policies.
A nationwide Rasmussen poll found that nearly half of Americans (45 %) want the administration to stop spending the remaining bulk of the $787 billion economic-stimulus fund – doubting that the money will create any new jobs. Just 36% want the spending to continue while 20% say they’re not sure.
With the unemployment rate spiraling up to 9.4% in May and this year’s budget deficit speeding well past 1.8 trillion, Americans are turning against Obama’s handling of the economy and the unprecedented rise in government spending.
Last week, the Gallup Poll said that, while 55% of their sampling approved of the way he (Obama)* was handling the economy, 42% disapproved – up sharply from 30% in February.
Americans are growing even more disgusted with the way Obama is dealing with the budget deficit – with 46% approving and48% disapproving. His numbers are worse on the issue of “controlling federal spending” – 45% approve but for the first time, a 51% majority disapproves.
These polling numbers were reinforced by a number of economists on the left and the right who say his infrastructure stimulus has been an abject failure from the beginning.
“Despite administration claims, the stimulus package has created or saved few jobs,” said University of Maryland economist Peter Morici. “The stimulus package was poorly conceived. Not enough is devoted to hard projects, and little of the spending will stimulate late permanent growth,” Morici said last week in his latest economic analysis.
The same view can be found at the conservative Hoover Institute on the Stanford University campus.
“The end of the recession is still months away but it is increasingly clear the stimulus package was a mistake. To date, it has had no identifiable beneficial impact on the economy,” Stanford economist John Cogan told me.
“More importantly*, its impact later this year and next will be decidedly negative because the funds required to finance the package’s spending will be drawn from private-sector resources that are needed to fuel the recovery. At this juncture, Congress would be wise to repeal the remainder of the program,” Cogan said.
That idea may be gaining support among Republicans on Capitol Hill whose “stop the spending” plea is resonating with millions of Americans angered by the Obama Democrats’ spending spree on make-work, “pork-barrel” projects that will enlarge the federal deficit but employ few workers.
Believe it or not, this is pretty much what I've been saying all along. I wholeheartedly believe the public's money would have been much better spent by giving a million dollars to each unemployed citizen back in February 2009.
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