The Obama White House has released a new report that claims that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) has saved or created millions of jobs. Mini-Me crows about it:
- “Everyone now acknowledges there would be somewhere between 2.5 (million) and 3.6 million fewer jobs available today, fewer people working today, were it not for the Recovery Act,” Biden said.
I wonder who “everyone” is? Perhaps he means everyone whose new, non-productive government job has been created through printing and borrowing, and then spending 10% of GDP on consumption? Remember, none of this money is being invested in new businesses and industries, even according to the Fed itself. If no one is hiring for productive economic activity, we’re just borrowing and spending and calling it economic growth. This means, unfortunately, there is no real recovery, and as soon as the borrowing and spending stops, the economy stops.
Obama’s Council of Economic Advisors (CEA) actually cites their own estimates as the source of the technical data for the report:
- The CEA estimates that as of the second quarter of 2010, the ARRA has raised employment relative to what it otherwise would have been by between 2.5 and 3.6 million. These estimates are broadly consistent with the direct recipient reporting data available for 2010:Q1.
So, according to Jimmy, when Jimmy graded his own math test, Jimmy got an “A”. Way to go, Jimmy!
Shooting holes in this ridiculous pronouncement is just too easy. Here’s what the original sales pitch for the $787 Billion “Stimulus” bill (ARRA) looked like:
Here’s the number of reported unemployed (which doesn’t even include the millions who’ve given up looking for full-time work):
Here’s the reported unemployment rate:
So, the number of unemployed stayed the same, and while the unemployment rate has fallen slightly from its peak it is still higher than when the ARRA was passed by CONgress in February 2009. The taxpayers are now $787 Billion poorer. By all measures, then, ARRA has been a dismal failure, more proof of the government’s ability to spend other people’s money stupidly. So, either the White House is lying, or CONgress is a bunch of hapless morons (more likely, both). Way to go, Jimmy!
Here’s a chart of the number of Americans on food stamps (yes, that’s 40 million on food stamps):
So are you guys feelin’ the love yet? Me neither.
And we’re not alone. This CBS poll reports that 75% of Americans think the effects of the recession will last another two years or more.
- More than eight in 10 say the condition of the economy is bad, up five points from last month.
I guess CEA is smoking hopium. And if I just planted in anyone’s mind a mental image of Christina Romer passing a pipe, forgive me.
