Bob Herbert (NYT): Promises, Promises (the no-jobs recovery)

[Dudley_DUright]

One of the main reasons for the decline in President Bush's credibility is the disconnect between the rosy economic scenarios his administration keeps touting and the much more dismal real-life experience of millions of American families.

Mr. Bush likes to say, "America's economy is strong and getting stronger." He recently boasted, "Since May 2003 we have seen the economy grow at its fastest pace in nearly 20 years." He predicted that prosperity would soon "reach every corner of America."

The president needs to get out more. He could visit the working men and women across the state of South Carolina who have watched the factories and the mills close and their jobs vanish like lights in a blackout. He could chat with the people lining up at soup kitchens and food pantries from Harlem to Oklahoma and beyond. He could take a tour of the Pacific Northwest or Silicon Valley, listening to families that have been devastated by the information technology bust and the outsourcing of high-tech jobs.

When the labor secretary, Elaine Chao, was questioned on CNN about the disappointing jobs report for January (112,000 jobs were created when 150,000 had been anticipated), she said: "Well, the stock market is, after all, the final arbiter. And the stock market was very strong this morning in reaction to the news that we have just received."

more...

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/16/opinion/16HERB.html?hp

[mhr]

1. Wall Street Is Not Main Street; The Stock Market Is Not The Economy!

eom

[lovedems]

2. Well, if consumer spending accounts for 2/3 of economic activity

then I want to know how people can spend money when they don't have a J.O.B!

My husband and I have cut our spending drastically. Almost everyone we know has.

Just the ignorant chimp. He wants to tout a BOOMING, JOBLESS RECOVERY. He is just like his dad, out of touch with the working folks in this country.