January 19, 2012

 

 

 

Friday, January 20, 2012, marks the third anniversary of the inauguration of President Obama. After three years of the president’s failed policies, it is clear that President Obama’s policies have made things worse. Despite his best intentions, President Obama’s policies—including an onslaught of regulatory burdens on American businesses, the constant threat of higher taxes, and record debt—have left Americans worse off. The following is a brief synopsis of some of the record setting economic failures during the president’s first three years in office

President Obama’s Promise on Jobs

 

“Now, what makes this recovery plan so important is not just that it will create or save 3.5 million jobs over the next two years…  It's that we’re putting Americans to work doing the work that America needs done in critical areas that have been neglected for too long; work that will bring real and lasting change for generations to come.” —President Barack Obama. Remarks by the President and Vice President at Signing of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, February 17, 2009

 

Reality Under President Obama

 

• Unemployment was the Worst since the Great Depression: Unemployment (8.5 percent in December) has now been above 8 percent for 35 consecutive months, the longest span since the Great Depression. From March 2009 (the month after the failed $1.2 trillion “stimulus” was enacted) through December 2011, unemployment has averaged 9.4 percent.  Three years ago, the Obama Administration said that unemployment would never reach 8 percent if the “stimulus” was approved. 

 

• The Number of Unemployed Americans Reached an All-Time Record High:  In October of 2009 the number of unemployed Americans reached an all-time record high of 15.4 million.  The number of unemployed eclipsed 13 million for the first time in history two months after President Obama took office and has remained above 13 million for 34 straight months.

 

• The Average Time for an Unemployed Worker to Find a Job was the Longest in History:  The average number of weeks it takes for job seekers to find a job reached 40.9 weeks in November of 2011, the longest average time that Americans have been unemployed since the statistic was first recorded in 1948. The average time it takes for people to find a job is up from 19.8 weeks in January 2009 when President Obama took office.
  
  
• The Number of American Workers Fell by More than Half a Million: In February 2009, the month after President Obama was inaugurated, the number of Americans in the labor force was 154.5 million. By December 2011 the number of people in the workforce shrank by 634,000 as discouraged workers stopped looking for jobs. This drop occurred despite that fact that the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) says 150,000 workers are added to the labor force each month because of population growth.

 

• Youth Unemployment Reached an All-Time Record High: Under President Obama, the unemployment rate among youths ages 16 to 19 reached 27 percent in October 2010, the highest level ever recorded.  Prior to President Obama taking office, the highest youth unemployment had ever been was 24.1 percent in 1982.

 

• Discouraged Workers Reached an All-Time High: The number of Americans who wanted to work but simply gave up because they didn’t believe that any work was available hit an all time high in December 2010, reaching 1.3 million. Prior to President Obama taking office, the highest number of so-called discouraged workers had been half of that, 642,000 in December 2008.

 

• Record Number Forced to Work Part-Time: The number of Americans who worked only part-time because they could not find full-time employment reached an all-time high of 9.3 million under President Obama in September 2010. The number of people working part-time for economic reasons has remained above 8 million for 36 consecutive months.

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President Obama’s Promise on Poverty

 

“I absolutely will make that commitment. Understand that when I make that commitment, I do so with great humility because it is a very ambitious goal. And we're going to have to mobilize our society, not just to cut poverty, but to prevent more people from slipping into poverty.” —President Barack Obama. Democratic Candidates Compassion Forum, Grantham Pa. April 13, 2008

 

Reality Under President Obama

 

• Americans Living In Poverty Reached an All-Time Record High: According to the Census Bureau, the nation's official poverty rate in 2010 was 15.1 percent, up from 14.3 percent in 2009─the third consecutive annual increase in the poverty rate. There were 46.2 million people in poverty in 2010, up from 43.6 million in 2009─the fourth consecutive annual increase and the largest number in the 52 years for which poverty estimates have been published.

 

• Food Stamp Recipients Reached an All-Time Record High: In September 2011, the number of Americans receiving food stamps reached an all time record high of 46.2 million. Today, 15 percent of Americans receive food stamps, an increase of 45 percent since President Obama took office.

 

• 1 in 2 People are Now Poor or Low-Income: According to a December Census Bureau report, nearly half of all Americans are now classified as poor or low-income as a result of the Obama economy. The 97.3 million Americans who fall into the low-income category combined with the 49.1 million who fall below the poverty line now equal 146.4 million people or 48 percent of the U.S. population.

 

President Obama’s Promise on Business Growth

“Jobs will be our number one focus in 2010, and we’re going to start where most new jobs do—with small businesses. This proposal takes the money that was repaid by Wall Street banks to provide capital for community banks on Main Street. Together with our proposal to cut taxes for small businesses to spur hiring and increase wages, we are making the critical investments we need for our economic recovery.” —President Barack Obama, Statement from The White House, February 2, 2010.

 

Reality Under President Obama

 

• Entrepreneurship Reached a 17-Year Low: According to Bureau of Labor Statistic’s data, the number of new business start-ups in 2010 fell to the lowest level since the data was first recorded in 1994.  Since 2007, there has been a 23% drop in new business creation.

 

• Ease of Starting a Business in the U.S. Fell from 4^th to 13^th: According to the World Bank’s Doing Business 2012 report, the U.S. now ranks 13^th in the world in the ease of starting a new business and has been steadily declining since President Obama took office.  In 2011, the U.S. was No. 8. In 2009, the U.S. was ranked No. 6. It was fourth in 2008 and third in 2007. The U.S. now trails such job creators as Macedonia, Georgia, Rwanda, Belarus, Saudi Arabia, Armenia and Puerto Rico in the category.

 

• Bankruptcies Reached an All-Time Record High: The total number of bankruptcies in the year that ended June 30, 2010 hit over 1.5 million—the largest number of cases ever filed in any 12-month period and the first time they have ever totaled more than 1.5 million, according to the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, which handles federal bankruptcy filings.

 

President Obama’s Promise on Foreclosures

 

“A second thing we're going to do under this plan is we will create new incentives so that lenders work with borrowers to modify the terms of sub-prime loans at risk of default and foreclosure.” —President Barack Obama. Remarks by the President on the mortgage crisis, February 18, 2009

Reality Under President Obama

 

• Foreclosures Reached an All-Time Record High: The October 2011 Mortgage Monitor report released by Lender Processing Services, Inc. shows foreclosure inventories are on the rise, reaching an all-time high at the end of October 2011 of 4.29 percent of all active mortgages.

 

President Obama’s Promise on Gas Prices

 

"We'll also take steps to reduce the price of oil and increase transparency in how prices are set so we can ensure that energy companies aren't bending the rules.” —President Barack Obama. Remarks in Indianapolis, Indiana, April 25, 2008

Reality Under President Obama

 

• Gas Prices have Increased by 82 Percent Since Obama took Office:  According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the average price of a gallon of gas has increased by 82 percent in the three years since Obama took office. When President Obama was inaugurated, a gallon of gas cost $1.832. The average cost of gas is now $3.342.