Our economy is not creating enough jobs, and the policies coming out of Washington are a big part of the reason why. Don’t tell that to Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner – he of “Welcome to the Recovery” fame – who declared this morning on Fox News Sunday that the economy is “absolutely” in better shape than it was three months ago. By just about any measure, Secretary Geithner is absolutely mistaken:
JOBS: The economy added 216,000 jobs in March, and the unemployment rate fell to 8.8 percent. The president was reportedly “emboldened” by the data. Fast forward to June, when the economy added just 18,000 jobs, and the unemployment rate rose to 9.2 percent. “Job Search Stretches Past a Year for Millions” was the headline of a piece in Friday’s Wall Street Journal.
GROWTH: The economy grew at a 1.8 percent pace in the first quarter. Last week, Goldman Sachs cut its estimates “for real GDP growth in the second and third quarter of 2011 to 1.5% and 2.5%, respectively, from 2% and 3.25%.” The analysis goes on to say that “final demand growth has slowed to a pace that is typically only seen in recessions.”
CONSUMER CONFIDENCE: Consumer confidence “fell to a seven-month low in June on continuing worries about high unemployment and stagnating wages,” according to the Associated Press.
SMALL BUSINESSES: The Christian Science Monitor reported last week that “small-business optimism has been sinking since March,” with one survey showing that “more small firms are planning to shrink their payroll this summer than expand it.”
GAS PRICES: USA TODAY reported on Friday that gas prices “have unexpectedly surged the past two weeks to a national average of almost $3.70 – a dollar higher than levels a year ago.” This news came less than a month after the Obama Administration tapped the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) in a bid to ease the pain at the pump.
From its failed “Recovery Summer” and the budget that launched the tagline “spending the future” to the recent debt limit talks, it’s become evident that White House is simply not serious about ending the spending binge that is destroying jobs and endangering our children's future. The fact that the White House is in denial about the state of our economy is even more disconcerting.
As Speaker Boehner said this morning, addressing our debt crisis is about what’s best for jobs and our economy – not the president’s re-election prospects. “Washington spending's been out of control, and what's happened over the last two years really shows how much out of control it's gotten,” he said, adding “I am going to continue to work with my Congressional colleagues in both parties and my House Republican Conference to try to develop a framework within the ‘Cut, Cap and Balance' effort that the House passed this past week.”
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