FLASHBACK: Obama On The History Of Economic Growth

Those Who Ignore History…

Three Years Ago Today, Obama Instructed That “History Does Show That You Need To Have Economic Growth Before You Have Job Growth.” OBAMA: “But history does show that you need to have economic growth before you have job growth. And today’s GDP is an important sign that the economy is headed in the right direction and that business investment, which had been plummeting in the last several months, is showing signs of stabilizing. This means that eventually, businesses will start growing, and they’ll start hiring again. And that’s when it will truly feel like a recovery to the American people.” (President Barack Obama, Remarks On The National Economy, Washington, D.C., 7/31/09)

Three Years Later, Obama Has Not Delivered Economic Growth

The New York Times: “U.S. Economy Slowed To A Tepid 1.5% Rate Of Growth.”(Shaila Dewan, “U.S. Economy Slowed To A Tepid 1.5% Rate Of Growth,” The New York Times, 7/27/12)

• The Washington Post: “Growth At Or Below 2 Percent Isn’t Enough To Lower The Unemployment Rate.”(The Washington Post,  Twitter Feed, 7/27/12)

“An Already Wobbly Recovery Is Losing Even More Steam.” “The U.S. economy slowed sharply in the second quarter, growing just 1.5% as consumers slashed spending and businesses grew more cautious about hiring and investing, underscoring that an already wobbly recovery is losing even more steam.” (Neil Shah, “Weak Economy Heads Lower,” The Wall Street Journal, 7/28/12)

Mark Zandi, Chief Economist At Moody’s Analytics, Says That “Nobody Is Going To Be Really Happy With The Economy Going Into The End Of The Year.” “‘Nobody is going to be really happy with the economy going into the end of the year,’ said Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody’s Analytics.” (Patrick Reis and MJ Lee, “New GDP Numbers Add To Old Worries For Obama,” Politico, 7/27/12)

The Wall Street Journal’s “Real Time Economics” Blog: “Halfway Through, 2012 Has Been A Disappointment.” (Kathleen Madigan, “Halfway Through, 2012 Has Been A Disappointment,” The Wall Street Journal’s “Real Time Economics,” 7/30/12)

Obama Has Not Delivered Job Growth

The Washington Post’s Fact Checker Said “Obama Is On Track To Have The Worst Jobs Record Of Any President In The Modern Era.” “Unless the economy turns around in the next 18 months, Obama is on track to have the worst jobs record of any president in the modern era. That would be an accurate statement.” (Glenn Kessler, “Rick Perry’s Claim That Obama Has ‘Killed More Jobs’ Than Any Other President,” The Washington Post’s “The Fact Checker”, 8/22/11)

Since President Obama Took Office, The Nation Has Lost 473,000 Jobs And The Unemployment Rate Has Remained Above Eight Percent For 41 Straight Months. (Bureau Of Labor Statistics, Accessed 7/31/12)

• 23.4 Million Americans Are Either Unemployed, Underemployed Or Have Given Up Looking For Work. (Bureau Of Labor Statistics, Accessed 7/31/12)

• Since Obama Took Office, The Average Duration Of Unemployment Has Doubled From 19.8 Weeks To 39.9 Weeks. (Bureau Of Labor Statistics, Accessed 7/31/12)

Obama Has Not Delivered Ideas That Resonate With Americans

Americans Want The Next President To Focus On Jobs And Corruption Rather Than Higher Taxes. “Creating good jobs, reducing corruption in the federal government, and reducing the federal budget deficit score highest when Americans rate 12 issues as priorities for the next president to address. Americans assign much less importance to increasing taxes on wealthy Americans and dealing with environmental concerns.” (Jeffrey M. Jones, “Americans Want Next President To Prioritize Jobs, Corruption” Gallup, 7/30/12)

• 92 Percent Of Americans Think It Is Extremely/Very Important For The Next President To Prioritize Creating Good Jobs, While 49 Percent Think It Is Extremely/Very Important For The Next President To Prioritize Increasing Taxes On Wealthy Americans. (USA Today/Gallup, 1030 A, MoE 4%, 7/19-22/12)

• Only 32 Percent Of Obama Supporters Say That Increasing Taxes On Wealthy Americans Is Extremely Important. (USA Today/Gallup, 1030 A, MoE 4%, 7/19-22/12)

• Politico Headline: “Obama Supporters Lukewarm On Tax Push.” (Byron Tau, “Obama Supporters Lukewarm On Tax Push,” Politico, 7/30/12)

Former Clinton Pollster Doug Schoen On The Obama Campaign: “They Have No Clear Message Or Overarching Theme Other Than Class Warfare And Attack Politics.” “Doug Schoen, the former Clinton pollster who routinely knocks other Democrats and helped promote the now-defunct third-party group Americans Elect, summed up this critique in an interview with BuzzFeed. ‘They have no clear message or overarching theme other than class warfare and attack politics,’ Schoen said of Obama’s campaign.” (Alexander Burns and John F. Harris, “Second-Guessing President Obama,” Politico, 6/14/12)