Democrats are Sure to Blame Trump for Rising Unemployment Rates

For the last 7+ years, the President Obama, enjoyed falling unemployment rates because many unemployed workers simply gave up looking for work.  As a result, and under the current official unemployment calculation rules, they were no longer considered part of the workforce.  Subsequently, President Obama saw increasingly improving unemployment rates because these people were MIA as far as the Census Bureau was concerned.  In fact, if they are had been added into the "Alternative Measures of Unemployment (U6)", the real  rate would be double what it is.

A recent survey reported by CNBC, in an article titled "US unemployed have quit looking for jobs at a 'frightening' level: Survey", clearly explained this fact.  According to that polling, 59% of Americans out of work for 2 or more years had given up looking for employment.  Overall, 43% of all those out of work have given up trying to find a job. All of which are no longer in the Census Bureau's calculus of unemployment rate.

Now, following Trump's election, it appears that many of the these former uncounted "bench sitters" are starting to look for work, again.  As a result, the unemployment rate is rising:

Click on Graphic to Enlarge

Each month since Trump was elected, the unemployment rate has increased while the Labor Force Participation has also increased.   This, to me, suggests that those former "bench sitters" are believing that Trump will find them work; and are once again actively looking.   They are now among the "counted" and the unemployment rate is rising.  It is no coincidence that the labor force participation rate -- the percentage of workers who consider themselves in the workforce -- went from 62.6% in November to 62.9% in January; and, over the same period, the unemployment rate rose from 4.6% to 4.8%.

The downside of this is that uninformed people will blame Trump for rising unemployment when, in fact, the real culprit was the Obama Administration.   It is highly possible that the unemployment rate will go well above 5%.  And, there is no way that the anti-Trump media, will go out of their way to explain the truth.

References:

January Unemployment Report: https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.a.htm

US unemployed have quit looking for jobs at a 'frightening' level: Survey: http://www.cnbc.com/2016/06/08/us-unemployed-have-quit-looking-for-jobs-at-a-frightening-level-survey.html

What's the real unemployment rate? - CNBC.com: http://www.cnbc.com/2016/05/06/whats-the-real-unemployment-rate.html

Trump's Impossible Dream for Detroit

By any measure, the city of Detroit is a perfect example of the failure of Democratic rule in many of our major cities.  Run by Democrats for decades, the Motor City has the highest black population of any city in America. 81.6% of Detroit is African American.  Unfortunately, it is also the most violent. At its peak, it had 1.8 million residents.  By 2013, only 689,000 could claim residency.  Worse yet, 47% of Detroit's residents are functionally illiterate and can only read at a fourth grade level or below.  It is the poorest big city in the country with 40.1% living below the poverty line.

Illiteracy and crime will not bring good jobs and businesses back to this town. It will take decades of reform to improve the educational system sufficiently enough to attract hiring by well-paying businesses, and, the high crime rate will just continue to cause people to leave the city in fear.

In light of all these problems, it may seem that there is no way that anyone can put this town back together.

However, in the short term, Trump could attract new businesses to the Motor City by declaring Detroit an enterprise zone.  In other words, give tax breaks for every new job a business creates.  He can also provide substantial tax breaks for any company who relocates to, or starts a  new business there.

Another way to help rebuild the city would be to start a revitalization program.  Using federal funds from the Department of Education, they can take unskilled and unemployed men and women, and train them to rehab properties while learning trades such as painting, carpeting, dry walling, etc.  A program like this would help gentrify entire neighborhoods and attract people back to the city; while preparing many  for new careers.

Sadly, because Hillary will be elected, Detroit will never see any movement towards the rebuilding of a once vibrant city.  There are only so many "green" jobs Hillary can create to get Detroit and America back on its feet.  Sorry for the sarcasm (Not really!).  At least, Trump's trip to Detroit has focused a bright light on the condition of many black lives in America.

References:

Detroit mayor slams Trump's visit to black church: http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/294420-detroit-mayor-slams-trumps-visit-to-black-church

At Least A Few Black Churchgoers Liked Trump's Detroit Speech: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/trump-detroit-black-voters_us_57cb60c6e4b078581f13559f

Blackest Cities in America: https://www.google.com/search?q=detroit+blackest+city+in+america&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

Census bureau: Detroit is poorest big city in U.S. - Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/michigan/2015/09/16/census-us-uninsured-drops-income-stagnates/32499231/

Detroit Population 2013: https://www.google.com/search?q=detroit+population&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

US Cities With The Highest Violent Crime Rates: https://www.google.com/search?q=most+dangerous+city+in+u.s.&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

Nearly Half Of Detroit's Adults Are Functionally Illiterate, Report Finds: https://www.google.com/search?q=detroit+literacy+rate&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

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New York & California Just Killed Entrepreneurship

In just 16 years, the minimum wage in the State of California will see a rise of 222% from $6.75 in 2006 to $15 in 2022.  That is an average annual increase of nearly 14%.  In New York, the increase to $15 from, again, $6.75 in 2006 is more complicated as follows:

• For workers in New York City employed by large businesses (those with at least 11 employees), the minimum wage would rise to $11 at the end of 2016, then another $2 each year, reaching $15 on 12/31/2018.
• For workers in New York City employed by small businesses (those with 10 employees or fewer), the minimum wage would rise to $10.50 by the end of 2016, then another $1.50 each year, reaching $15 on 12/31/2019.
• For workers in Nassau, Suffolk and Westchester Counties, the minimum wage would increase to $10 at the end of 2016, then $1 each year, reaching $15 on 12/31/2021.
• For workers in the rest of the state, the minimum wage would increase to $9.70 at the end of 2016, then another .70 each year, until reaching $12.50 on 12/31/2020 – then  continue to increase to $15 on an indexed schedule to be set by the Director of the Division of Budget in consultation with the Department of Labor.

The reality is that no other class of workers has seen that kind of increase.  In fact, assuming a 2% raise a year, it would take the middle class worker an average of 111 years to have a 222% rise in their salaries.

The point is that many people will find themselves less able to afford products and services that are heavily dependent on low wage workers; such as fast food businesses, retail, hospitality, and leisure.  The same goes for this nation's 55 million seniors, who, at best have seen increases of just 1% a year in their Social Security checks.  Additionally, millions more, such as waiters and waitresses, won't be eligible for minimum wage because they earn tips.  And, so too, for the three quarters of 47 million Americans in poverty who aren't even working.

More importantly, the $15 wage will accelerate the death of entrepreneurship and its ability to create jobs.  It will be much more expensive to start new businesses that generally depend heavily on entry level employees.  Entrepreneurship has already been in decline for decades, but now it will become a much higher risk proposition.  Even before instituting this excessive wage, 1-in-4 startup businesses failed in the first year.  50% will be kicked to the curb in just 4 years, and operational costs are one of the 4 main reasons for failure.

I hope I'm wrong, but I think the $15 minimum wage will be a real job creation killer.  And, in fact, a job killer for businesses who must raise prices, and in turn, lose customers who can't afford those price hikes. Also, the $15 minimum wage will bring in automation to replace the humans making that wage.  Already, you can rent a robo-security guard that can hear, smell, and has 360 degree night vision for just $6.25 an hour.  So, if you can already automate a security guard, it only seems logical that other lesser tasks, such as flipping burgers, will follow suit.

References:

Governor Cuomo Signs $15 Minimum Wage Plan and 12 Week Paid Family Leave Policy into Law: https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-cuomo-signs-15-minimum-wage-plan-and-12-week-paid-family-leave-policy-law

California, New York enact $15 minimum wages: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/04/05/california-new-york-enact-15-minimum-wages.html

California Minimum Wage 2006: https://www.google.com/search?q=california+minimum+wage+in+2007&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

New York Minimum Wage 2006: https://www.google.com/search?q=minimum+wage+in+new+york+in+2006&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

Minimum Wage - United States Department of Labor: Questions and Answers About the Minimum Wage: http://www.dol.gov/whd/minwage/q-a.htm

The Mysterious Death of Entrepreneurship in America: http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2014/05/entrepreneurship-in-america-is-dying-wait-what-does-that-actually-mean/362097/

The Slow Death of American Entrepreneurship: http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-slow-death-of-american-entrepreneurship/

Startup Business Failure Rate By Industry: http://www.statisticbrain.com/startup-failure-by-industry/

The Four Major Reasons for New Business Failure: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/four-major-reasons-new-business-failure-51924.html

Rent A Robot Security Guard for $6.25 an Hour: http://www.psfk.com/2014/12/rent-a-silicon-valley-security-bot-for-6-25-per-hour.html

The Real State of the Union

Barack Obama would have you think that our "Union" is strong, but the people know differently. That is why his approval numbers have stayed below 50% for months since 2013.  Here are some of the numbers that prove the "Union's" lack of strength.

• 9.9%: This is the real unemployment rate when the following are taken into consideration: (1) part timers unable to find full time work; (2) underemployed workers; (3) discouraged workers that have given up trying to find a job.
• The 2nd Quarter 2013: This is when Obama promised that we would see a 5% unemployment rate as his stimulus package was passed into law.  Instead, unemployment didn't hit 5% until late 2015.
• 8.3%: The current Black unemployment rate.
• 23.7%:  The rate of unemployment among Blacks ages 16 to 19.
• 2.1%: The slowest Economic Growth since World War II.
• 1989: That's how far back you have to go to find the average median household family's current income.
• 47.6 million: A record number of people in poverty.
• 27%: The percentage of Blacks in poverty; and 24% of all Hispanics in poverty.
• 10.8 Million: The number of disabled workers.  Up from 7.4 million when Obama came to office; a 44% increase.
• 20.3%: The average increase in ObamaCare premiums going into 2016.

Believe me, there are many more statistics that prove this"Union" is not strong, but the key ones listed above speak volumes.


References:

Obama Job Approval: http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/president_obama_job_approval-1044.html

The Worst [economic] Expansion Since WWII: https://www.google.com/search?q=The+Worst+Expansion+Since+World+War+II+Was+Even+Weaker+...&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8 

Alternative Measures of Unemployment: http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t15.htm

The Employment Situation December 2015 - Bureau of Labor Statistics:  http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf

White House Stimulus Predictions for Unemployment: http://www.qando.net/2011/09/09/the-white-house-stimulus-chart/

Record 46.7 Million Americans Live In Poverty; Household Incomes back 1989 levels: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-09-16/record-467-million-americans-live-poverty-median-houshold-income-back-1989-levels

Poverty Rate by Race/Ethnicity: http://kff.org/other/state-indicator/poverty-rate-by-raceethnicity/

Table 2. Social Security benefits [including disability beneficiaries], November 2015:  https://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/quickfacts/stat_snapshot/#table1


Average Increase in ObamaCare Premiums going into 2016: https://www.google.com/search?q=average+increas+in+obamacare+premiums+in+2016&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

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The December 2015 Jobs Report Exposes Deceptive Calculation of the Unemployed

Despite supposedly creating nearly 900,000 new jobs in the last three months of 2015, the unemployment rate remained at exactly 5% for each of those months; and the number of unemployed has remained at roughly 7.9 million. (Sources: Employment Situation Report: Tables A-1 and A2).

To any logically thinking person, creating 900,000 new jobs should have reduced the 7.9 million unemployed to 7 million, and the unemployment rate should have dropped to at least 4.5%.  But no.  And, that "no" is all about how this country has been calculating unemployment rates since the Great Depression and how it is all about politics.

For all the years that Obama has been in office, the unemployment rate and the number of unemployed have been artificially enhanced by not counting the number of people who are out of work; frustrated at not being able to find a job; and therefore, no longer looking for work.  Now, to use that well-worn phrase: "The chickens have come home to roost!"

The fact that the unemployment rate has stayed constant, despite the creation of thousands of new jobs, just tells us that the market is finally improving to the extent that those people who previously were not counted are finally able to find work.  This is a good thing.  But, to a politician like Obama, it could be bad thing.  Especially, if more and more people start looking for work and the unemployment rate starts rising again; versus just holding at 5%.

The reality is that Americans are not being told the truth about overall unemployment.  The fact that bench-sitters haven't been counted means that the unemployment rate is understated by half.  I think it's high time that the practice of reporting unemployment numbers be changed to reflect the actual truth.

One more thing.  In those last 3 months of 2015, the average weekly wage fell from $871.92 in October to $870.78 in December (source Table B-3).  Creating jobs is one thing.  People getting good paying ones is another issue.

Reference:

The Unemployment Situation Report for December 2015: http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf

What's the REAL unemployment rate?: http://www.cnbc.com/2016/01/08/whats-the-real-unemployment-rate.html

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A Decade's Low Unemployment Claims: Not a Good Thing!

Last Thursday, the average of unemployment insurance claims was the lowest since Nixon was in Office; at least according to one headline.  Of course, this is even more outstanding when you consider the fact that the workforce was 40% smaller when Nixon was in office.

So, why should I be concerned over what seems to be such great news?

The reason is that, as of a year ago, 34% of our workforce were freelancers or independent contractors.  That's more than 53 million workers in 2014; almost double the 27 million freelancers in 2006 when they represented 18% of a smaller labor force of 151 million workers.  And, for sure, the number today is even higher than last year's 34%.  But, a critical point point to make is that these workers are not eligible for unemployment compensation whenever their services are no longer needed by a company.

Thus, we would probably have higher unemployment claims today if it weren't for the fact that a full one-third of our workforce is now self-employed.

Sadly, this is a growing trend as companies try to avoid the heavy burden of higher employment costs such as the employer mandate of ObamaCare; higher minimum wages in 29 states than the federal $7.25 an hour; and, Obama's new overtime rule for salaried workers.

It is now estimated that 40% of the workforce will be forced into a role of self-employment by 2020.  Not a good thing for the American worker and their families.  Thanks to over regulation of businesses, job security is vanishing in this country,.

References:

Jobless claims average hasn’t been this low since Richard Nixon: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/average-jobless-claims-havent-been-this-low-since-richard-nixon-2015-10-01

One in Three U.S. Workers Is A Freelancer: http://blogs.wsj.com/atwork/2014/09/04/one-in-three-u-s-workers-is-a-freelancer/

40% of America's workforce will be freelancers by 2020: http://qz.com/65279/40-of-americas-workforce-will-be-freelancers-by-2020/

How many freelancers are there? In 2006?: http://freelancersmovement.org/how-many-freelancers-are-there/

Labor Force Size By Year: http://www.dlt.ri.gov/lmi/laus/us/usadj.htm

State Minimum Wages | 2015 Minimum Wage by State: http://www.ncsl.org/research/labor-and-employment/state-minimum-wage-chart.aspx

Obama's new overtime rules: How they'd work and who they'd affect:  http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-obama-overtime-rules-explainer-20150630-htmlstory.html

The Lives of Living Blacks Matter More

In the U.S., blacks disproportionately live shorter lives.  They are more likely to be killed; not by whites, but by other blacks.  Their babies are more likely to be aborted.   Hispanics aside, they are generally less educated and more often illiterate.  They have higher drug addiction rates, commit crimes, and are imprisoned more often. There are higher rates of unemployment. Poverty is common and home ownership is not.  Lastly, most black babies are born to single mothers.

This is a national disgrace. It is an issue that is much greater than those chanting "Black Lives Matter" over a very small number of unarmed blacks that are killed by white cops.

For decades, the Democrats have pandered to black citizens for their votes.  Billions of government spending to better black lives hasn't worked, and most of the things noted in the first paragraph are things that blacks, themselves, can control; starting with the lack of a strong family unit.

72% of black babies are born to unwed mothers. A primary reason that black women are 3 times more likely to be in poverty as compared to white single women with the black poverty rate of 28.6%.  Of all the abortions in this country, more than 35% are of black fetuses.  Essentially, the concept of "family" is missing in the black community.  It is this lack of a complete family unit that leads to higher levels of crime, gang membership, and lower education levels.

In order to improve black lives, we need high-profile activism that preaches the importance of a strong family and a good education.  A good education starts with, somehow, tamping down the education-interrupting violence in inner city schools.  Contrary to what seems to be in some minds, being well educated and having a strong family is not being an "Uncle Tom".  Not everything is the white man's fault, and someone needs to tell that truth and stop perpetuating that opposing and eternal lie.


References:

CNN's Don Lemon says more than 72 percent of African-American births are out of wedlock: http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2013/jul/29/don-lemon/cnns-don-lemon-says-more-72-percent-african-americ/

Fact Sheet: The State of African American Women in the United States: https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/race/report/2013/11/07/79165/fact-sheet-the-state-of-african-american-women-in-the-united-states/

Black Americans Have Fewer Years to Live – Here's Why: http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/data-mine/2015/01/05/black-americans-have-fewer-years-to-live-heres-why

FBI: Murder Victims and Offenders by Race:   https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2013/crime-in-the-u.s.-2013/offenses-known-to-law-enforcement/expanded-homicide/expanded_homicide_data_table_6_murder_race_and_sex_of_vicitm_by_race_and_sex_of_offender_2013.xls

Blacks Abortions: https://www.google.com/search?q=number+of+blacks+abortions&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

Statistics of incarcerated African-American males - Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statistics_of_incarcerated_African-American_males

Illiteracy Statistics: http://www.statisticbrain.com/number-of-american-adults-who-cant-read/

Walter E. Williams: Why are inner-city schools more violent today than in the past?: http://www.deseretnews.com/article/765550887/Why-are-inner-city-schools-more-violent-today-than-in-the-past.html?pg=all

Really? The Baltimore Cops are the Problem?

When it comes to crime, the Baltimore police have their hands full.  Baltimore is a city of just 623,000 people.  Yet, every year, they have more than 40,000 crimes. That's one crime for every 15-1/2 residents. Theoretically, that means that each resident will experience one crime every 15 years.  That 1-in-15-1/2 also creates  a helluva lot of suspects within that population; and may be why so many residents think they're being harassed by the cops. 

Based on the murder rate per 1,000 people, Baltimore's is 9-1/4 times higher than the national average.  The rape rate is twice that of the nation as a whole.  The robbery rate stands at 6 times higher, and assault is almost 3 times the norm. All together, the violent crime rate per 1000 residents is nearly 4 times higher than the U.S. average. 

According to the U.S. Attorney General and the Baltimore Mayor, the city has a civil rights problem within its police force.

To that, I say that the city -- which is 63% black and has a police force that is nearly half black -- has a civility problem.  Not a civil rights problem.  Police don't cause crime. They enforce the law and protect against it.  When you have 438 crimes per square mile each year, something is seriously wrong and it isn't the police.  They are simply being scapegoated for other more politically relevant problems; such as a 24% poverty rate and very high unemployment. Just 42% of the working-age adults in Freddie Gray's neighborhood have a job. Overall, young black men have a 37% unemployment rate in that city.  Also, 36% of Baltimore's adult population are functionally illiterate and can't read at even a basic level. High poverty, unemployment, and illiteracy have all been linked to higher crime rates. Baltimore has them all.

References:

After Freddie Gray death, U.S. starts civil rights probe of Baltimore police: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-md-justice-announce-20150508-story.html#page=2

Baltimore Quick Facts: http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/24/24510.html

Baltimore Police Department: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baltimore_Police_Department

Just 42 percent of the residents in Freddie Gray’s neighborhood are employed: http://fusion.net/story/127163/just-42-percent-of-the-residents-in-freddie-grays-neighborhood-are-employed/

Baltimore's economy in black and white: http://money.cnn.com/2015/04/29/news/economy/baltimore-economy/

The Relationship between Crime and Unemployment: http://digitalcommons.iwu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1069&context=parkplace

Poverty and Crime | National Dialogue Network: http://www.nationaldialoguenetwork.org/poverty-and-crime/

Baltimore Literacy Rate: http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1999-04-19/news/9904170418_1_adult-literacy-literacy-rates-welfare-recipients

Two-Thirds of Students Who Can't Read by the Fourth Grade Will Either Wind Up in Jail or on Welfare: http://www.begintoread.com/research/literacystatistics.html

What J.F.K. Knew About Economics And What Most Democrats Today Don't

In 1963, President John F. Kennedy -- a Democrat -- was entering his second year in office and was enjoying robust economic growth.  Faster than that of either of his two predecessors.  Even so, he declared that "the absence of recession is not tantamount to economic growth."  What he was referring to was the fact that, despite good GDP numbers, nearly 1-in-5 Americans (+38 million) were in poverty and the unemployment rate was still high at 6%; although down from 7% before he took office.

Thus, to fix the poverty and unemployment problems, Kennedy proposed across the board cuts in income taxes and a reduction of the corporate tax rate; including reducing taxes on the rich from a rate of 91% to just 65%.  In doing so, he offered no offsetting spending cuts to pay for the reductions.  His argument for not cutting spending was simply his belief that"a rising tide lifts all boats".  Or, in other words,  lowering taxes would create jobs for those who were unemployed and in poverty and, as such, revenues would increase so much so that his proposed tax cuts would naturally be offset.  That is as long as spending was controlled. Sadly, Kennedy was assassinated before he could see his tax reductions passed into law.

Then, in 1964 and just three months after Kennedy's death, President Lyndon Johnson signed into law the Kennedy tax cuts in what is now known as the Revenue Act of 1964.  All of Kennedy's assumptions were proven correct.  As such, Johnson had the lowest average unemployment rate of any President since World War II.  Revenues grew 68% from when Kennedy took office.  The most astonishing fact was that, in just four years, the number of Americans in poverty fell from more than 38 million in 1964 to just over 25 million by the end of 1968.  A 34% reduction.

Today, Democrats like President Obama want to punish the rich and corporations with higher taxes.  In wanting to do so, they always point to President Clinton who, despite raising taxes, enjoyed strong economic growth.  However, what those same Democrats fail to recognize is that during Clinton's time, it was mostly due to the dot-com business and wealth boom of the 1990's.

Kennedy's economic prowess -- with economic growth faster for both him and Johnson than Clinton -- is anathema to most Democrats because, if they were to praise Kennedy for cutting taxes on the rich and corporations, this would be to deny themselves of their victimization strategy in order to get votes.  After all, corporations and the rich are supposedly at the heart of everything that is evil and wrong in this country and the rest of the world.  Kennedy was rich and he never tried to hide it; unlike Hillary Clinton who is also rich.  She would prefer that you think that she and Bill were dead broke when they left the White House; and, would like you to think they still are.   Of course, it's really hard to bash the rich when you're one of them.

References:

Kennedy Presidential Library: JFK on the Economy and Taxes:  http://www.jfklibrary.org/JFK/JFK-in-History/JFK-on-the-Economy-and-Taxes.aspx

Economic Growth By President: http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/chart-economic-growth-president

The Revenue Act of 1964: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revenue_Act_of_1964

U.S. Unemployment Statistics by President:  http://historyinpieces.com/research/us-unemployment-rates-president

Historical Lesson of Lowered Tax Rates: http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2003/08/the-historical-lessons-of-lower-tax-rates

Census Bureau: Poverty from 1959 to 1968: http://www2.census.gov/prod2/popscan/p60-068a.pdf

Seattle's $15 Minimum Wage and the Liberal Spin

On April 1st, Seattle, Washington's $15 Minimum wage law technically went into effect.  Already, the liberals have attacked Republicans who had claimed that raising it that high would cost jobs and shutter businesses. The argument is that none of that has happened.   In fact, on April 10th, the far left think tank, "Think Progress", wrote an online article titled: "Seattle Restaurant Data Demolishes Conservative Argument Against $15 Minimum Wage."

The problem with the "Think Progress" article is that it leads people to believe that a $15 minimum wage completely went into effect April 1st.  It didn't.

If you are a small business of less than 500 employees, you have seven years to gradually raise it to $15.  That's about an 81 cent per hour raise per year from the previous $9.32 in Washington state.  All other businesses have just three years to increase it, and since most small business like restaurants and retail operations employ minimum wage workers, overall impact will be minimal; at least this year.

There's another reason that Seattle can handle the $15 minimum wage over time without a lot of impact on jobs. Seattle is wealthy.  The average per capita income is $43,237 (in 2013).  That's much higher then our nation as a whole at just $28,155 (again, in 2013). Because of its wealth, and the city's ability to keep people working, the unemployment rate was just 3.9% in December of 2014.

So, I guess from the 'Think Progress" article, we're supposed to conclude that raising the national minimum wage to $15 won't do any harm.  That reminds me of that old adage: "But, will it play in Peoria."  In Peoria, Illinois the average per capita salary is only $28,438 (in 2013); or, about $13.67 an hour (based on a 40-hour work week).  In terms of the unemployment rate, Peoria is already hurting at  6.9% as of December 2014.  Compared to Seattle's poverty rate of 13.6%, Peoria sits at 17.2%; meaning that 1-in-6 wouldn't see their salaries increased anyway.

Let's not have a national minimum wage of $15.  If Seattle, with its high standard of living, does it...then, fine.  But not every community can afford the price hikes that will result from it.

References:

Seattle approves $15 minimum wage: http://money.cnn.com/2014/06/02/news/economy/seattle-minimum-wage/

Seattle Restaurant Data Demolishes Conservative Argument Against $15 Minimum Wage: http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2015/04/10/3645268/new-evidence-buries-lie-about-seattle-minimum-wage/

We Are Seeing The Effects Of Seattle's $15 An Hour Minimum Wage: http://www.forbes.com/sites/timworstall/2015/03/16/we-are-seeing-the-effects-of-seattles-15-an-hour-minimum-wage/

USA Quick Facts: http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/00000.html

Seattle Quick Facts: http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/53/5363000.html

Seattle Unemployment Rate: https://www.google.com/search?q=seattle+unemployment+rate&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

Peoria Quick Facts: http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/17/17143.html

Peoria Unemployment Rate: https://www.google.com/search?q=peoria+unemployment+rate&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

Will it Play in Peoria: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Will_it_play_in_Peoria%3F

November Jobs Report: Long On Quantity...Short On Quality.

President Obama and his adoring media could barely catch their breaths when reporting that 321,000 jobs were created in November. The liberal MSNBC host Rachael Maddow opened by saying:

Any Republicans asking “where are the jobs?” today should probably have their heads examined.

The only problem with the 321,000 jobs is the quality of that number. With further examination, you would see that the full-time workforce fell by 150,000 jobs and, the part-time workforce rose by 77,000.  In other words, once again, good full-time jobs are suffering at the hands of more and more part time employment; as this chart clearly shows:

Since 2010 and the passage of ObamaCare, the percentage of part-time employment in the workforce has soared.

This is a problem that we have seen all along as companies struggle to avoid paying the employer mandate of ObamaCare by converting full time employees to those working less than 30 hours a week. This is also why, in so many polls, Americans still think that the economy -- especially jobs -- is the number one priority facing this country.

References:

U.S. job growth soars, tops 300k | MSNBC: http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/us-job-growth-soars-tops-300k

Obama hails strong jobs report: http://thehill.com/policy/finance/economy/226132-obama-hails-strong-jobs-report

Hold on: Jobs report wasn't so great after all: http://www.cnbc.com/id/102243878

75 Percent Of Jobs Created This Year Were Part-Time Due to Weak Economy and ObamaCare: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/21/part-time-job-creation_n_3788365.html

Half Of All Jobs Created In The Past 3 Years Were Low-Paying: Study: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/13/low-paying-jobs_n_3266737.html

PollingReport.com: Priorities and Problems: http://www.pollingreport.com/prioriti.htm

Obama's Choice For Illegals: Unemployment In Exchange For Amnesty?

By all accounts, President Obama's executive order will give at least 4.5 million illegals with U.S. born children permanent and legal residency through the existing green card system.  As a result they  will no longer have to work in the shadows; constantly in fear of deportation.

What the executive action ignores is the fact that many employers, not all, hire illegal workers because they will accept low wages, work hard, work long hours and, more importantly, won't complain about either their pay or their working conditions.  In return, there is also an implied agreement that the employer won't turn them in to immigration authorities, unless of course, they give them a reason to do so.

So, what happens when the fear of deportation is taken away by executive action?

First of all, you need to understand that many of these people can't speak or read English.  Some are unable to read in their native language as well, being illiterate and having limited job skills.  So, if it weren't for the fact that employers can get away with paying low wages, these people would normally be unemployable.  And, that's exactly what Obama's executive action may do.

After becoming legal residents with their green cards in hand, those once-illegals must be lawfully paid at least the minimum wage or the prevailing wage for the kind of work being done.  Thus, the low pay advantage goes away.  Also, their newly found status means that they no longer have to fear exposure and possible deportation; so, they are free to complain about salary, working conditions, and long hours.  In essence, they will become no different than any other U.S. born worker.

Ultimately, employers will begin to hire better educated, English speaking, literate Americans over the former illegals.  What we will then wind up with is some number (possibly in the millions) of unemployable workers who will, because of their legal status, be wards of the state; living off of welfare and other poverty benefits.

Thank you, Mr. Obama!

References:

Green Cards and Permanent Residency: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permanent_residence_%28United_States%29

US Ordering 34 Million Green Cards for Illegal Plan: http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/green-card-immigration-surge/2014/10/19/id/601688/

Obama Plan May Allow Millions of Immigrants to Stay and Work in U.S.: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/14/us/obama-immigration.html




 

Are We Really Better Off Since Obama Took Office?

In front of adoring crowds at one of his all-too-many campaign style events, President Obama has claimed that "By almost any measure, we are better off since I took office" or that America is stronger under his watch.

The problem with such statements is that they are factually untrue when looking at the broader state of our union.

Sure, the President can claim that overall unemployment is down from where it was when he took over the reins of government in January 2009.  But, to get there, overall unemployment rose to a rate of 10% in the first year-and-a-half of his presidency.  Something that the so-called "stimulus" was supposed to avoid by promising that the unemployment rate wouldn't go above 8%. Even now, 5 years passed the end of the official end of the recession, this country still has an unemployment rate that is a full point above pre-recession levels.

Our major cities have extraordinarily high unemployment rates.  Chicago, Obama's home town, is still at 8.0%; and, that's just recently down from a January 2014 rate of 9.6%.  Detroit, now in bankruptcy, had an unemployment rate of  17.7% in July.  A city like Atlantic City, that depends heavily on Americans spending leisure-time money, is suffering from cash-strapped tourists unable to indulge in what they have to offer. The casinos are closing and the unemployment rate sits at 13.7%. More worrisome is the fact that our three largest cities -- Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago -- are dangerously close to following Detroit into bankruptcy.

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is stuck at a 5-year growth rate of about 2%. This is, at least, the worst recovery since World War II and, some say in the history of the United States when using alternate methods of calculating GDP.
Then there's the overall economic health of America.  For 5 straight years the median incomes of this country have fallen and income inequality has risen to a record high.  Half the jobs created under this President's watch were low income/low paying.  When he took office, only 30 million Americans were on food stamps.  Today, that number is 47 million; a 56% increase.  Similarly, only 38 million Americans were living in poverty.  Today, that number is a record 47 million and has stood at 15 percent of the population for the last 2 years. Thus, as the population grows, so does the amount of people left in poverty.

Of course, the real elephant in the room is the amount of debt that Obama has left us with; a number that only gets worse by the day.  At the beginning of his first term, the federal debt was $10.6 trillion.  Today, it is closing in on $18 trillion; just $250 billion from the current number (as of this writing) of $17.756 trillion. A number that, for the first time in this nation's history, is greater than the total annual economic output of the country.  Of those advanced economies in the world, only Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece and Spain can claim debt levels above their economic output. All of which are near bankruptcy and on the brink of bringing the European Union to its knees.

When we see people standing behind President Obama and nodding in agreement that things are better, you have to wonder what planet they're from.  Most other Americans (74% in one poll) still think that we never recovered from the recession.  And, in so many ways, they're right.

References:

By almost any measure, we are better off since I took office: http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2014/07/10/obama_by_almost_every_measure_we_are_better_off_than_when_i_took_office.html

Obama claims US is 'stronger' than 'when I first came into office' as economy weakens, debt soars, America loses global influence and border crisis deepens: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2722926/Obama-claims-US-stronger-I-came-office-economy-weakens-debt-soars-America-loses-global-influence-illegal-immigrants-flood-border.html

Half Of The Jobs Created During The Recovery Were Low-Paying: http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2013/05/14/2008591/jobs-recovery-low-paying-minimum-wage/

Chicago Unemployment Rate Falls to 8.0%: http://www.worldbusinesschicago.com/news/chicago-unemployment-rate-jul2014

Detroit Unemployment Rates:  https://ycharts.com/indicators/detroit_mi_unemployment_rate

Unemployment rises in most US states in July: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20140818/BIZ/308180072

 Another Atlantic City Bust: Trump Plaza Closes: http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/trump-plaza-4th-atlantic-city-casino-shutdown-25528499

3 huge cities flirting with bankruptcy: http://money.msn.com/investing/post--3-huge-cities-flirting-with-bankruptcy

Obama’s economic recovery: officially the worst in US history: http://poorrichardsnews.com/post/41366829334/obamas-economic-recovery-officially-the-worst-in-us

Median Income Falls For 5th Year, Inequality At Record High: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/17/median-income-falls-inequality_n_3941514.html

47 million Americans on food stamps: http://img.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/files/2013/09/SNAP-participants.jpg

That’s rich: Poverty level under Obama breaks 50-year record: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/jan/7/obamas-rhetoric-on-fighting-poverty-doesnt-match-h/?page=all

America's Poverty Rate Stuck At 15 Percent For Second Straight Year: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/17/poverty-america-census_n_3940812.html

 74% said we are still in a recession: http://patch.com/new-hampshire/concord-nh/is-the-recession-over-yet#.VBR1qmNAVLU

U.S. Federal Debt Exceeds GDP: http://jamesviser.com/?p=995

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly: The July Jobs Report

The Good:

Obviously, the good was that 209,000 jobs were created.  Additionally, 119,000 people rejoined the workforce rather than sit home or waste time trying to find a job that was impossible to find.  This month broke a long standing trend of people leaving the workforce.  As a result, a long-term trend of a falling labor participation rate was reversed with that rate rising from 62.8% in June to 62.9%.  Most notably, the number of people forced to take a part time job because there was no full time work fell by 129,000.  People 55 years and older continue to beat the general population with an unemployment rate of 4.5%.  This simply proves that older Americans are willing to work longer and that employers are more willing to hire the older worker because of their experience and dependability.

The Bad:

The unemployment rate went up from 6.1% to 6.2%. This is not as bad as it sounds because it was primarily driven by people re-entering the workforce.  This is typical of a recovering employment situation where discouraged workers start looking for work again; rather than not be counted as part of the workforce and not part of the calculus for the unemployment rate.  The U-6 unemployment rate continues to remain high at 12.2% and went up again this month.  Many consider this the true unemployment rate because it does not "exclude" discouraged workers.

The Ugly:

While teen (16-19) unemployment was lowered this month, it still stands at a horrible 20.2%.  But, the ugly fact was that Black teen unemployment rose again this month from 33.4% (last year) to July's 34.9%.  Simply, employers are more willing to employ older adults than hire the less experienced teens.  The high Black teen unemployment shows that small businesses still haven't recovered in the minority neighborhoods of our major cities. High teen unemployment is one of the fallouts from increasing the minimum wage because older adults are more likely to compete with teens for entry level, minimum wage jobs.  Long term, this could result in a highly unemployable subset of workers who gained no experience during these lean years of high teen unemployment.  It could also result in increased income inequality in the years going forward.

Reference:

Employment Situation Report for July 2014:  Above data from Tables A-1, A-2, A-9, A-10, and A-15: http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm

Old Workers Hit New Record High As Jobs For Key 25-54 Age Group Slide By 142K: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-08-01/old-workers-hit-new-record-high-jobs-key-25-54-age-group-slide-142k

French Toast: Hollande's Piketty-Like Tax-The-Rich-Scheme Fails Miserably.

Two years ago, France's socialist President Francois Hollande increased his country's Value Added Tax (VAT) on consumer purchases; upped the corporate tax rate; and, imposed a 75% income tax on euro-millionaires.  All of this was supposed to increase revenues by 30 billion euros per year.

However, the score card is in and roughly half of that 30 billion was actually achieved.

This was all too predictable and is a perfect example of why the "tax-the-rich" French economist, Thomas Piketty, is wrong.

The French consumer, faced with higher VAT taxes, simply cannot afford to buy as many new things as they otherwise would, and, as a result, business profits fell and so did tax revenues.  That's just human nature and, something that socialists (or Democrats in our country) never seem to add into the equation when planning to raise taxes. Nor do they understand that, corporations, faced with increased taxes on themselves, are more inclined to raise prices which, in turn, further lowers consumer activity and again results in lowered taxable business incomes. Lastly, that 75% tax on the rich only caused some of them to leave France; thus, again reducing tax revenues.

The simple fact is that Hollande's tax strategy is hurting France.  Unemployment recently hit a record high of 11%; although its coming down now.  We, in the U.S., didn't even see that level of unemployment when we were at the height of our Great Recession. Their economy is stagnant, with the last 2 quarters either being at barely measurable or at dead zero.  And, the rich, who pay a hefty amount in taxes, are continuing to leave along with their valuable talent and their equally valuable taxable income.

References:

Thomas Piketty: Capital in the Twenty-First Century: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_in_the_Twenty-First_Century

France in 14bn-euro tax black hole: http://www.bbc.com/news/business-27602312

French unemployment at record high: http://www.bbc.com/news/business-25922231

 France GDP Growth Rate: http://www.tradingeconomics.com/france/gdp-growth

France's Reckoning: Rich, Young Flee Welfare State: http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/world/2014/February/Frances-Reckoning-Rich-Young-Flee-Welfare-State/

Rising Long-Term Unemployment: Proof Of Obama's Mishandling of the Economy

Recently, when the February jobs report was released, a number of Democrats and left-leaning media types jumped on the fact that the number of people who were out of work for more than 26 weeks had suddenly risen by 203,000.  Conveniently proving that the Democrats proposed extension of long-term unemployment benefits -- which are now stalled in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives -- is sorely needed.  Of course, some on the political right would say that the sudden jump in this number is another negative in Obama's handling of the economy and that the President's over-regulation is why we have so many long-term unemployed.  So to prove those people wrong, the far-left MSNBC was compelled to come to Obama's defense by showing long-term unemployment declining every year since he took office:

While that chart certainly shows what might look like a positive for Obama, the chart they aren't showing you is this one from the Huffington Post:

It clearly shows that we are at record high levels of long-term unemployment as a percentage of overall unemployment.  Of the 10.5 million unemployed in February, 37% are still long-term unemployed. That's more than double than the absolutely worst levels under any president since 1948. At the current rate of decline, we won't get back to pre-recession levels for decades to come. 

As far as extending unemployment benefits are concerned, we shouldn't be concerned.  What is being ignored in all of this debate over extending benefits is the fact that there are so many so-called safety nets in the system that people are better off without that unemployment check.  Without it, they get a welfare check, free Medicaid, housing assistance, subsidized child care, Earned Income Tax Credits, free Obama-phones, Food Stamps, and oh so many goodies that it just doesn't pay to have a job.  So, instead of Democrats telling the truth that they have made it better not to work, they, instead, want to use extended unemployment benefits as a wedge election issue to once again make Republicans look heartless.

References:

Long-term unemployment rises: http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/jobs-report-february

February Unemployment Report: http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.a.htm

Strong Jobs Report Could Mean Bad News For Unemployment Benefits: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/06/unemployment-rate_n_4235332.html

Psst! Job Losses Are On The Rise Again!

Ever since the employment situation hit rock bottom in 2010, the number of weekly jobless claims has steadily fallen.  That is until August of 2013.  At that juncture, the decline of job losses just bottomed out.  Now, it appears that joblessness is again on the rise:

Click to Enlarge

Obviously, the trend is negative. I could speculate and say its because of ObamaCare.  Or, it could be a signal that the economy is slowing again and that we might be headed for another recession.  Whatever the reason, the trend is months long and moving decidedly upwards.  That's too long for it to be brushed off as some kind of statistical fluke.

The Real Employment Numbers That Never See Headlines

When the employment report is issued each month, most people and, certainly the media, are only interested in two numbers: (1) the number of jobs created or lost in that month and (2) the resulting unemployment rate.  But, those two numbers are a result of some pretty heavy-handed massaging in what the Bureau of Labor Statistics calls "seasonal adjustments".  Seasonal adjustments have always come under fire, especially lately, from a lot of well-respected economists, because the "adjustments" seem to be very large and, thus, questionably accurate.

Take, for example, the latest jobs report.  The headline says that 113,000 jobs were created with a resulting drop in the unemployment rate from 6.7% to 6.6%.  Now, to any logical observer, this makes perfect sense in that a falling unemployment rate must mean that some number of jobs had to have been created to lower the rate. But, if you dig deeper into the January jobs report, you would see a completely different picture when it comes to the unadjusted numbers.

According to the raw data in Table A-2, whites, which make up 79% of the workforce,  saw their unemployment rate go up in January by 9%; from 5.7% to 6.2%.  Yet, after seasonal adjustment, whites  remained the same at 5.7% as in December.  The raw data also said that blacks also saw their rate go up by 9%; from 11.6% to 12.6%.  After adjustment, their final number was 12.1%. While there is no adjustment data available for Asians, their unemployment rate went up 17% from 4.1% to 4.8%.  All three groups added together represent 96% of the workforce and all saw substantial losses in employment.  Yet, the final employment number says jobs were created and the unemployment rate fell.

Lastly, I would be remiss if I didn't include an absolutely horrendous fact that our President wouldn't want you to know when he's out there touting the lowest unemployment rate during his presidency.  That fact is that teen unemployment among blacks now sits at 39% (raw) or 38% after adjustment.  In the city of Chicago, the President's hometown, black male teens are at a unbelievable 92% unemployment rate.  Maybe that's why gang membership has risen 40% since Obama became President. 


References:

Has The Fed Been Fooled By Phony Jobs Numbers?: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-09-24/has-the-fed-been-fooled-by-phony-jobs-numbers-.html

Table A: January Employment Situation Report: Seasonally Adjusted Results:  http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.a.htm

Table A-2: January Employment Situation Report: Raw And Seasonally Adjusted Numbers by Race, Age, and Sex: http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t02.htm

New Urban League study finds 92 percent of African American male teens are unemployed: http://www.myfoxchicago.com/story/24486694/new-study-finds-92-percent-of-african-american-male-teens-are-unemployed

FBI: Gang Membership Up 40% Since 2009: http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2013/07/confirmed-gang-membership-up-40-under-obama-violent-attacks-on-whites-up-18/

Raising The Minimum Wage Hurts America's Youth

If you listen to President Obama, raising the minimum wage is nothing but a win-win situation.  It will pull people out of poverty and strengthen the middle class.  But, whenever the Federal government injects itself into business activities, there are many more losers than there are winners in the process.  And, when it comes to raising the minimum wage, one of the biggest losers is youth employment.

The reason for this is simple.  A higher minimum wage results in unemployed adults (those age 24 and above) being more willing to compete with unemployed youths (those16 to 24 years of age) for entry-level job openings. In turn, employers are more likely to hire adults with proven work records versus young people with little or no work experience.

To prove my point, you need only look at a couple of charts.  The first chart is that of the Civilian Unemployment rate for the years 2007 through and including all of 2011. (Note: the chart and its data are extracted from FRED - the Federal Reserve's economic database. The red notations are mine.).

In the world of economics,  the measurement of unemployment rates is considered a "lagging" indicator.  This means that, when there is an economic downturn, like a recession, it takes a few months into the recession before employers actually realize that their businesses are being hurt and they need to start laying people off.  Then, when a recession ends, there is a similar lag before employers start rehiring again and the unemployment rate declines. On this chart, I have noted these "lags" in red.  But, there's something odd about this chart.  In May of 2007, the unemployment rate uncharacteristically rose prior to the recession; moving from a low of 4.4% to 5% before leveling off in late 2007. 

To understand what was happening in 2007, you need to look at a similar chart of youth unemployment; which is a subset of the above chart.

Now, unlike the prior chart, I've included 2006 data to show just how flat the Youth Unemployment Rate was in the year prior to 2007.  But, in 2007, there was a dramatic increase; months before the recession hit.  The sole reason behind this was the passage and implementation of the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007 where the minimum wage went from $5.15 an hour to $5.85 in 2007; upped again to $6.55 an hour in 2008; and, again, in 2009 to the current rate of $7.25/hour.

Further proof that adults have been literally "stealing" entry-level jobs away from our nation's youth comes from how slow youth unemployment has recovered in comparison to overall unemployment.  In 2010, both youth unemployment and overall unemployment rates topped out.  Since then, general unemployment has been lowered to a 7% rate from its high of 10.1%; a 31% improvement.  On the other hand, youth unemployment has only moved downward from a height of 18.4% to the current rate of 16.5%; a mere 10.3% improvement. 

The problem with sustained high youth unemployment is the fact that society, in general, is jeopardized.  For one, idle youths due to high unemployment rates have resulted in a 40% rise in gang membership in the period 2009 to 2012; as reported by the FBI.  And, I'm quite sure that trend didn't abate in 2013.

Additionally, social programs like Social Security and Medicare are highly dependent on a broad base of younger workers paying into these systems in order to support the high cost of retiring workers.  Without younger workers in the workforce, the two programs could go bankrupt a lot earlier than projected.  More importantly, the increase in the minimum wage and, the sustained high rate of youth unemployment, may be creating a permanent underclass of marginally employable workers or totally unemployable workers who will be stuck in poverty for their whole lives.  Just the opposite of Obama's belief that raising the minimum wage will pull people out of poverty.  To that point, the high youth unemployment rate may be one of the primary reasons why the record high number of people in poverty, 46.5 million, hasn't come down one iota since 2010.  This at a time when general unemployment has improved by more than 30%:

Besides what I've shown above, there have been dozens of research studies that have proven that raising the minimum wage costs jobs and hurts the economy; but, liberals like the President, and other activists, continue to ignore the truth.

Obama's Predictions On The Sequester Never Came True

Back in February, our big-government and big-spending President predicted dire consequences if the $85.4 billion in Sequester spending cuts went into effect on March 1.  He said it would cost jobs and could harm our fragile economy.  Despite his warnings, the Sequester automatically kicked in because Congress could not come up with an alternative budget agreement.

So, the President, in order to prove how right he was, decided to make the cuts as obvious and painful to Americans as possible while completely laying the blame at the feet of the Republicans.   He shut down the White House tours.  He closed federal parks. The Blue Angels and Thunderbirds were grounded.  Even tax refund checks were delayed; and, the list goes on.

But what has really happened since sequestration?

Well, the economy has grown at the fastest pace in 2 years with Gross Domestic Product (GDP) moving from a snail's pace of 1.8% in the first quarter of 2013; to 2.5% in the 2nd quarter; then, galloped to 4.1% in the 3rd quarter.  In another measure of economic growth, Federal tax revenues hit a record high of $2.47 trillion this year; up $285 billion from the prior year.  Then, contrary to the Obama prediction, the unemployment rate fell from 7.7% in February to 7% in November.  This was the lowest rate since March of 2009.

Lastly, the very same President who condemned the Sequester spending cuts back in February, has now decided to take credit for those same spending reductions and the resulting deficit reduction.  On July 24th, in front of an adoring crowd at Knoxville College in Illinois, he proudly proclaimed: "Our deficits are falling at the fastest rate in 60 years."

You see, with Barack Obama, everything is either a shading of the truth, a half-truth, or an out-and-out lie.  The fact is that the Sequester cuts were a mere pin-prick against the massive spending levels that  he has created.  They were not going to have some enormous impact on the economy or on unemployment.  Also, the idea of the Sequester, itself, originated out of Obama's White House. No way could the Republicans be blamed for it.  And, to take credit for the reduction in the deficit is just plain hypocrisy.