Unemployment and Obama's Policies

The Foundation

"The multiplication of public offices, increase of expense beyond income, growth and entailment of a public debt, are indications soliciting the employment of the pruning knife." --Thomas Jefferson

Government

"You would think $1 trillion in spending stimulus and $2.5 trillion of Fed pump-priming would produce an economy a whole lot stronger than 1.9 percent gross domestic product, which was the revised first-quarter number. And you'd think all that government spending would deliver a whole lot more jobs than 69,000 in May. But it hasn't happened. The Keynesian government-spending model has proven a complete failure. It's the Obama model. And it has produced such an anemic recovery that, frankly, at 2 percent growth, we're back on the front end of a potential recession. ... The unemployment rate rose slightly from 8.1 to 8.2 percent [in May]. The so called U6 unemployment rate, tracking the marginally employed or completely discouraged, increased to 14.8 percent from 14.5 percent. And labor earnings are barely rising at 1.7 percent over the past year, almost in line with the inflation rate. ... Barack Obama doesn't get this, but businesses create jobs. And firms have to be profitable in order to hire. Yet the president is on the campaign trail criticizing Mitt Romney by degrading the importance of profits. ... The Fed may yet launch a new quantitative easing to stop commodity deflation and accommodate the gigantic worldwide dollar demand. But the merits of this move are dubious. On the other hand, an extension of the Bush tax cuts right now would stop the economic and job slide and re-establish certainty. In fact, all the countries around the world should move to the supply side with lower tax rates to spur economic-growth incentives. Europe, China and Latin America ought to go back and read Ronald Reagan's speeches and examine his actions when he faced a similar crisis 30 years ago. It would be an hour or two well spent." --economist Larry Kudlow

Re: The Left

"Franklin Delano Roosevelt never denied that he created Social Security. Lyndon Baines Johnson didn't forswear any responsibility for Medicaid. Ronald Reagan never argued that his defense buildup didn't happen. The Obama White House, in contrast, wants to wish away the historic federal spending that is one of its signature accomplishments. White House press secretary Jay Carney ... urged reporters the other day to steer clear of 'the BS that you hear about spending and fiscal constraint with regard to this administration.' Not one to be outclassed by his press secretary, President Barack Obama kept up the edifying livestock theme by calling Mitt Romney's attacks on his deficit spending 'a cow pie of distortion.' The White House has a deeply conflicted relationship to its own record. It is saddled with a bad case of spender's denial, a rare psychological disorder afflicting committed Keynesians facing re-election at a time of record debt. On the one hand, spending is the lifeblood of 'Forward.' It saved us from another Great Depression. It is forging a glorious new future of green energy. ... On the other hand, the deficits and the debt that come with all this spending are alarming and unpopular. So Obama calls himself the most fiscally conservative president in more than half a century. ... He needs to consult an accountant and a therapist, and not necessarily in that order." --columnist Rich Lowry

Political Futures

"Romney is under no obligation to defend Bush and the old GOP Congress from the charge that spending went up a lot under Bush. It did. Indeed, looked at historically one could refer to the 'Bush-Obama' years in terms of spending growth. ... Romney, in my opinion, should turn the tables on Obama and make Obama defend his continuation of Bush's spending binge (If Romney wanted to be really cruel, he could make the case Obama has continued many of Bush's counter-terror policies as well). Romney has the luxury of being the outsider. He can criticize both parties' records over the last decade. The tea parties won't complain. Neither will independents. And, so long as Romney is respectful in how he frames his criticisms of GOP spending under Bush, most rank and file Republicans and movement conservatives will probably applaud as well. Meanwhile, watching Obama try to deal with an 'anti-Bush' opponent would be hilarious." --columnist Jonah Goldberg

Culture

"[T]he overwhelming majority of progressives are simply incapable of admitting when they're wrong. ... Shouting one down, or changing the subject completely are the other fallback positions for those who can't defend their argument using the 'tool of white oppression,' as it were. And then there's the ultimate fallback position when all else fails: We had good intentions. The road to hell is paved with good intentions. So are the roads in liberal enclaves such as New York and California where good intentions such as unconscionable giveaways to public unions, sanctuary city policies sheltering illegal aliens, and suffocating do-gooder bans on cigarettes, trans-fat oils -- and now sodas larger than 16 ounces -- must be endured for the sake of assuaging progressive sensibilities. Sensibilities that all revolve around the same premise: We know what's better for you than you do. Except that they don't. ... Only an idiot would focus laser-like on soft drinks, when public schools across the nation have severely curtailed phys ed courses, and when recreation fields remain largely unused by a couple of generations addicted to video games, texting, and perhaps the most sedentary lifestyles in history. ... The dirty little secret of progressivism is that their five decade love affair with moral relativity has largely eliminated the inevitable consequences that accompany bad choices." --columnist Arnold Ahlert

The Gipper

"God [gave] mankind virtually unlimited gifts to invent, produce and create. And for that reason alone, it would be wrong for governments to devise a tax structure or economic system that suppresses and denies those gifts." --Ronald Reagan

Opinion in Brief

"Remember Obama and Hillary's 'reset button' with Russia. How's that working out? Putin is (still) a KGB thug who kills or imprisons his enemies and who will be devoured by his own people if the price of oil goes low enough. ... When we were in the process of establishing a missile defense capability in the Czech Republic and Poland and the Russians objected, guess who blinked, much to the embarrassment of those two American allied nations that had committed to housing the missiles ... and who had trusted America and our strength? ... We helped drop bombs on Libya to prevent innocent casualties (humanitarian reasons Obama said). Many more innocents are dying Syria. Then again, the Russians didn't tell us we couldn't bomb Libya. ... [T]he mullahs in Iran are now feeling the sanction pinch. ... Having bought more time, the Iranians now want to sit down again. Where will these new 'negotiations' take place? Russia! ... [W]hy is Obama getting a pass for running the most incompetent foreign relations operation in history?" --Fred Thompson

Essential Liberty

"Can America afford to virtually 'go it alone' in defense of the liberty of others who are not willing, or able, to bear the burden and pay the price for their own freedom? I'm not sure there is a satisfactory answer to the question but it is a question that needs to be debated since we always seem to be the ones who pay the highest price. 'Is it worth it?' How will we measure worthiness? These are questions at the heart of the debate. Former President George W. Bush said, 'We're fighting them over there so we don't have to fight them here.' But we are already fighting them here as demonstrated by Sept. 11, 2001, the Ft. Hood shootings and numerous other successful and unsuccessful attacks. Somewhere between 'come home, America,' which would lead to isolationism and intervention in every conflict there is a pragmatic approach to war that America should consider. This ought to be an issue in the upcoming election, but it won't be unless journalists ask the right questions and demand answers from those who have, or are seeking, the power to start or join wars and send our sons and daughters to fight and perhaps die in them. Perhaps a return to the constitutional principle that only Congress has the power to declare war would help." --columnist Cal Thomas

For the Record

"President Obama's risible claim to know more about Judaism than any other American president already has been demolished by, among others, John Podhoretz, who points out that James Madison and John Adams, who both read Hebrew, certainly knew more about Judaism than does Barack Obama. In fact, most educated Americans in the early days of our country probably knew more about Judaism than does Obama: Part of the Puritan heritage is a very strong identification with Israel. American universities were offering regular Hebrew courses long before their English counterparts, and the careful study of the Jewish scriptures was part of any gentleman's education in religion and ethics. Hebrew was compulsory at Harvard at one point. Which is not to say that the Puritans and their descendants were exactly philo-Semitic -- only that they knew something. ... Even if President Obama were telling the truth, it would have been a boneheaded thing to say. ... It is the reflexive self-aggrandizement of President Obama that grates more than the silliness of his claim. The list of important subjects about which Barack Obama knows more than Thomas Jefferson did is likely a short one. A more sensible man would appreciate that." --National Review's Kevin D. Williamson

Reader Comments

"Narcissism and Tyranny -- The Consequence of Executive Egocentrism is an excellent commentary, Mr. Alexander. And so right about the narcissism of this socialist president. I wish Romney would confront Obama during the presidential debates on this very subject." --Tex Horn in Texas

"Make Obama meet personal attacks based upon questions directed at his own version of his history. A narcissist can't stand attacks on his image of himself. Since he cannot afford to view himself realistically, he can only defend that self image by personal attacks on those criticizing him. You can see that in his campaign already. At a certain point his responses will be so far out as to totally discredit him as a person, much less a leader." --Austin in Bellavue, Washington

"I think the best thing Romney could do in a debate is to find a way to really make Obama angry. He will get off script and we will then see the temper that I see reflected in his eyes sometimes. His ego can't withstand criticism and he will become defensive. The audience will see the real Obama materialize before their eyes." --Virginia in Atlanta

"When does Obama lose friends and alienate people? Every time he opens his mouth. Every time he swaggers and looks like he is omnipotent. Every time I see or hear him." --Jane in St. Petersburg

"Maybe Obama's team needs to change their slogan from 'Forward' to 'Forewarned.'" --Lowell in Johns Island, South Carolina

The Last Word

"[Barack Obama] told us America has 57 states, called the Malvinas the Maldives during a visit to South America, and hailed his reforms for bringing 'inefficiencies to our health-care system.' The president's gaffes, however, are simply not echoed the way the vice president's are. Perhaps that's because casting Mr. Biden as the fool who is weighing the ticket down helps the president escape accountability for his own agenda. Just how wise, for example, was it for Mr. Obama to ignore the economy in favor of a highly unpopular health-care bill that also cost him a Democratic House? Is it Mr. Biden or Mr. Obama whose policies have kept growth sluggish and unemployment north of 8%? And who was right on the contraceptive mandate? ... The truth is that there are two types of Washington people to be wary of. The first are those who emphasize how smart they are. The second ... are those quick to label others dumb. Certainly Mr. Biden is more loquacious than most pols, and he's had more than his share of doozies. What makes it different in 2012 is that the same Beltway establishment that once hailed Mr. Biden for speaking his mind now finds that highly inconvenient. In other words, for President Obama to remain all-wise and wonderful with this record, Mr. Biden has to be the stupid one." --columnist William McGurn

Semper Vigilo, Fortis, Paratus et Fidelis!
Nate Jackson for The Patriot Post Editorial Team