The Issue: The latest jobs report and Pres. Obama’s claim that the economy is moving in the right direction.
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We are being besieged with statistics about how the economy is doing, but President Obama does not like to use statistics (“Steps in the Double-Talk Direction,” Charles Gasparino, PostOpinion, July 10).
He just says that he inherited a “mess” and that we are doing “better,” things have “improved” or we need to “do more work.”
The overall unemployment rate is stuck above 8 percent, and the new jobs needed to sustain a recovery are just not materializing.
Our economic recovery is like a kid’s grade going from an F to a D-minus over the course of one year. We need much more.
When President Obama claims that things have improved, my response is, “Sorry, no second term for you.”
David Lipton
Beachwood, NJ
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It must be noted that, like Obama, President Ronald Reagan also inherited a recession — not only that, but he also inherited double-digit inflation and a Democratic Congress.
However, at this point in Reagan’s first term, unemployment was down, inflation was under control and the economy was growing at a rate of 7 percent annually.
Our lesson to learn is that we cannot rely on hope and change more than knowledge and experience.
Michael Keohane
East Patchogue
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I’m so sick of everyone dancing around the truth about the poor job numbers every month.
The economy is bad because the Republicans have put all of their efforts into keeping it bad.
When private jobs have gone up, Republican-led state governments have laid off public workers, and when Obama has presented coherent job bills, Republicans have filibustered them.
The sad reality is that the Republicans want a bad economy bad and Americans out of work just so they can get back into power and continue to enrich the wealthy at the expense of the middle class.
It’s the exact opposite of the American Dream.
Our economy could be growing and lots of Americans could be finding solid jobs and hope, but Republicans have been united in fighting tooth and nail against it.
Remember that in November.
Jeff Ganeles
Utica
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Commenting on yet another dismal jobs report, the president insists that government needs to spend more to get people back to work by having Congress pass his jobs bill.
This is dead wrong, as evidenced by his original trillion-dollar stimulus that did nothing to help the economy.
The government’s job is to create a favorable environment for the private sector to get things going, and this has not been done.
Massive government spending extended the Great Depression unnecessarily, and it is doing the same thing today.
Peter Kelly
Hazlet, NJ
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It looks like the landscape of Mars and the US jobs market have something in common: Both seem devoid of any life.
Gary Cella
Cos Cob, Conn.
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It took FDR nine years and a world war to rescue the American economy from the Herbert Hoover Great Depression.
Is it reasonable to expect Obama to overturn George W. Bush’s Great Depression in only three-and-a-half years?
Bill Chambers
Brooklyn
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Even Obama’s most obvious actions to boost the economy have been stifled by the 112th Congress.
Polls have consistently reflected the current Congress’ low approval ratings.
Last year, there were three near-shutdowns of the government and fights right up to the brink over matters that used to be routine, such as raising the debt ceiling.
When Congressional Republicans oppose unemployment-benefit extensions but hold out for tax breaks for the rich, they let American workers know whose side they’re on.
Stephen Galvacky
Delray Beach, Fla.