Failed Promise: Looking Out For The Middle Class

Four Years Ago Today, Obama Said “I Don’t Want To Wake Up In Four Years To Find That More Americans Fell Out Of The Middle Class, More Families Lost Their Savings, More Jobs Were Lost.”OBAMA: “I don’t want to wake up in four years to find that more Americans fell out of the middle class, more families lost their savings, more jobs were lost.” (Senator Barack Obama, Remarks At A Campaign Event, Espanola, NM, 9/18/08)

FOUR YEARS LATER, OBAMA WAKES UP TO FIND HIS POLICIES FAILED AND PROMISES BROKEN

Middle Class: The Washington Post Headline: “Census: Middle Class Shrinks To An All-Time Low” (Carol Morello, “Census: Middle Class Shrinks To An All-Time Low,” The Washington Post, 9/18/12)

Family Savings: 23.4 Percent Of Families Have No Savings At All, Up From 18.5 Percent In 2009. (Christine Dugas, “Recession Added Debt, Drained Families’ Savings,” USA Today, 5/12/12)

·         From June 2009 To June 2012, Real Median Annual Household Incomes Have Fallen By Nearly $4,000, From $54,916 To $50,964 “Real median annual household income fell to $53,508 from $54,916 during the 18-month recession from December 2007 to June 2009, according to the firm’s study of income data for the 36- month period ended in June 2012. Incomes kept falling during the 36-month period since then, dropping to $50,964 in June 2012.” (Jeff Kearns, “U.S. Incomes Fell More In Recovery, Sentier Says,” Bloomberg, 8/23/12) 

Jobs:Since President Obama Took Office, The Nation Has Lost 261,000 Jobs And The Unemployment Rate Has Increased From 7.8 Percent To 8.1 Percent.(Bureau Of Labor Statistics, Accessed 9/18/12)

·         In Obama’s Dismal Recovery, “Middle Class Jobs Have Been Replaced By McJobs.” “We said goodbye to more than eight million jobs in the downturn; we’ve added around four million back. It’s easy and dismal math. But there’s another painful dimension to this recovery that’s gotten far less attention than the lingering jobs deficit. It’s the fact that most of the jobs we lost offered decent pay, while the ones we’re adding are mostly low-level, service sector positions. Middle class jobs have been replaced by McJobs.” (Jordan Weissmann, “Our Low-Wage Recovery: How McJobs Have Replaced Middle Class Jobs,” The Atlantic, 8/31/12)

Unemployment: 23.1 Million Americans Are Either Unemployed, Underemployed Or Have Given Up Looking For Work.(Bureau Of Labor Statistics, Accessed 9/18/12)

Long-Term Unemployment: The Average Duration Of Unemployment Has Nearly Doubled From 19.8 Weeks To 39.2 Weeks. (Bureau Of Labor Statistics, Accessed 9/18/12)