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Obama 'Jobs Recovery’ More Than 100 Million Not Working
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Posted 02/18/2014 05:36 PM ET
January's labor report
confirmed yet another month with over 100 million Americans not working.
In fact, more than 100 million Americans have not been working in Obama's workers' paradise for all of 2012 and 2013, a unique achievement in American history.
White House spokesman James Carney hailed this as a milestone on the path toward the ultimate complete liberation of the American worker from the drudgery of work.
The 101.7 million Americans not working in January reflected the employment-population ratio for the month of 58.8%, compared to — to put it in proper perspective — 62% in a good year.
By the fifth year of Reagan's recovery, the employment population ratio was up to 61.5%, on its way to 63.0% in 1989. That represented an increase of 17 million jobs since the Carter recession started.
Today, after five years of Obama as president, we still have not recovered the jobs lost since the latest recession began in December 2007.
The economy then was employing 146.273 million Americans. More than six years later, in January 2014, the number of Americans employed was still only 145.244 million, or about 1 million fewer jobs.
By now in the normal recovery there would be 6 million more jobs.
Obama is not the only president to be challenged by a recession while in office.
Since the Great Depression, there have been 10 other recessions before this last one.
On average, all the jobs lost in those recessions were recovered within two years after the recession started.
Moreover, Obama apologists cannot claim that the recovery from the recession was so bad because the recession was so bad.
The historical record for the American economy has always been that the worse the recession, the stronger the recovery.
Under every other president in U.S. history, going back for well over a century at least, the economy was in a booming recovery within years, even under Franklin Roosevelt during the Great Depression!
How has Obama managed to "liberate" so many workers from work?
Through Social Security disability, which has increased by more than 21%, extending "unemployment" benefits to two years and by eliminating work requirements as a condition of receiving federal benefits.
The number of Americans on food stamps has soared by 50% under Obama to close to 50 million, largely because work requirements, asset checks and other restraints on abuse have been relaxed.
Indeed, more than twice as many more Americans have gotten food stamps under Obama than have gotten jobs.
Under ObamaCare, the same transformation is now under way for Medicaid.
Today, federal and state taxpayers pay a trillion dollars every year to the lowest 20% on the income ladder basically not to work.
Under Obama total welfare spending has doubled since 2008.
(Note that the administration is suing the state of Louisiana to turn over the names of everyone on welfare, precisely for Obama's voter-turnout database.)
CBO is now reporting that ObamaCare will force another 2.5 million workers out of the workforce by penalizing work through the withdrawal of health benefits as income rises.
Carney was quick to laud this further Obama worker liberation from work, saying these "workers" would no longer be "trapped in a job."
Private, independent economists estimate the figure will be double that, or 5 million.
CBO estimates that the slower economic growth from this reduced labor supply will mean $1.4 trillion less in federal tax revenue over the next 10 years.
So ObamaCare will increase the deficit after all.
But not to worry. At this rate, as the last American worker leaves the workforce to live on long-term unemployment benefits, the unemployment rate with a zero labor force, as the Bureau of Labor Statistics calculates it, will fall all the way to an all-time record 0%.
Wait till you see the plan Obama's chief economist, Jason Furman, is cooking up to finance this.
The Fed will simply print new money to cover universal "paychecks" for everyone, the ultimate Democratic program.
• Uhler is president of the National Tax Limitation Committee and National Tax Limitation Foundation.
• Ferrara is senior policy adviser for budget and entitlement reform for the foundation.
In fact, more than 100 million Americans have not been working in Obama's workers' paradise for all of 2012 and 2013, a unique achievement in American history.
White House spokesman James Carney hailed this as a milestone on the path toward the ultimate complete liberation of the American worker from the drudgery of work.
The 101.7 million Americans not working in January reflected the employment-population ratio for the month of 58.8%, compared to — to put it in proper perspective — 62% in a good year.
By the fifth year of Reagan's recovery, the employment population ratio was up to 61.5%, on its way to 63.0% in 1989. That represented an increase of 17 million jobs since the Carter recession started.
Today, after five years of Obama as president, we still have not recovered the jobs lost since the latest recession began in December 2007.
The economy then was employing 146.273 million Americans. More than six years later, in January 2014, the number of Americans employed was still only 145.244 million, or about 1 million fewer jobs.
By now in the normal recovery there would be 6 million more jobs.
Obama is not the only president to be challenged by a recession while in office.
Since the Great Depression, there have been 10 other recessions before this last one.
On average, all the jobs lost in those recessions were recovered within two years after the recession started.
Moreover, Obama apologists cannot claim that the recovery from the recession was so bad because the recession was so bad.
The historical record for the American economy has always been that the worse the recession, the stronger the recovery.
Under every other president in U.S. history, going back for well over a century at least, the economy was in a booming recovery within years, even under Franklin Roosevelt during the Great Depression!
How has Obama managed to "liberate" so many workers from work?
Through Social Security disability, which has increased by more than 21%, extending "unemployment" benefits to two years and by eliminating work requirements as a condition of receiving federal benefits.
The number of Americans on food stamps has soared by 50% under Obama to close to 50 million, largely because work requirements, asset checks and other restraints on abuse have been relaxed.
Indeed, more than twice as many more Americans have gotten food stamps under Obama than have gotten jobs.
Under ObamaCare, the same transformation is now under way for Medicaid.
Today, federal and state taxpayers pay a trillion dollars every year to the lowest 20% on the income ladder basically not to work.
Under Obama total welfare spending has doubled since 2008.
(Note that the administration is suing the state of Louisiana to turn over the names of everyone on welfare, precisely for Obama's voter-turnout database.)
CBO is now reporting that ObamaCare will force another 2.5 million workers out of the workforce by penalizing work through the withdrawal of health benefits as income rises.
Carney was quick to laud this further Obama worker liberation from work, saying these "workers" would no longer be "trapped in a job."
Private, independent economists estimate the figure will be double that, or 5 million.
CBO estimates that the slower economic growth from this reduced labor supply will mean $1.4 trillion less in federal tax revenue over the next 10 years.
So ObamaCare will increase the deficit after all.
But not to worry. At this rate, as the last American worker leaves the workforce to live on long-term unemployment benefits, the unemployment rate with a zero labor force, as the Bureau of Labor Statistics calculates it, will fall all the way to an all-time record 0%.
Wait till you see the plan Obama's chief economist, Jason Furman, is cooking up to finance this.
The Fed will simply print new money to cover universal "paychecks" for everyone, the ultimate Democratic program.
• Uhler is president of the National Tax Limitation Committee and National Tax Limitation Foundation.
• Ferrara is senior policy adviser for budget and entitlement reform for the foundation.
Read More At Investor's Business Daily: http://news.investors.com/ibd-editorials-perspective/021814-690331-americans-who-work-spend-1-trillion-on-welfare-for-those-who-dont.htm#ixzz2tsyRovxU
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