America’s economy grew by a minus cule 18,000 jobs in June, and unem ployment rose to an eye-popping 9.2 percent. Since April, the economy has produced a mere 43,000 new jobs.
Responded President Obama yesterday: “We still have a long way to go and a lot of work to do to give people the security and opportunity that they deserve.”
A very long way, we’d say.
Then again, maybe senior Obama adviser David Plouffe was right earlier in the week when he outlined what he hopes will be the case come Election Day — no one will have noticed!
“The average American . . . won’t vote based on the unemployment rate,” Plouffe said. “They’re gonna vote based on, ‘How do I feel about my own situation? Do I believe the president makes decisions based on me and my family?’ ”
Responding to the Friday jobs report, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney doubled down on Plouffe’s analysis: “Most people do not sit around the kitchen table and analyze GDP and unemployment numbers. They talk about how they feel, their own economic situation . . . whether they’re making their house payments.”
With the rate of foreclosures continuing to climb on Obama’s watch, maybe “house payments” isn’t the best metric.
But his naive logic shouldn’t surprise.
It’s been clear from Day One that this White House is clueless when it comes to the economy.
Yes, there is a huge international element to the mess, and achieving a full fix is pretty obviously beyond the power of one man, or even one nation.
But making matters worse isn’t hard.
Remember that Obama advisers — back in January 2009 — declared that the $862 billion stimulus bill was necessary to keep the unemployment rate from hitting 8 percent.
So the money was spent and the debt skyrocketed — along with unemployment, all the way to 10 percent.
Yes, it briefly dipped — but now, for a second straight month, it’s back up.
Yet, even as bipartisan efforts to produce a debt-ceiling deal continue, what’s the White House’s goal?
Tax hikes.
Imagine that: More taxes in the teeth of the worst economic environment since the Great Depression!
Clueless. Utterly clueless.
Just like Plouffe’s prognostication.