At RealClearPolitics, economist Larry Kudlow brings us the facts on the continuing economic malaise brought to us by the incompetents in the Obama administration. The Old Media and people in the administration would like to sell us on the idea that things are not so bad and are, indeed getting better. But Americans looking around can see for themselves the lackluster performance of the economy. High gas prices, high food prices and high unemployment can’t be hidden from the public. The falling poll numbers of the President are the direct result of the poor performance of this economy. If he loses in November, as I think he will, it will be because he has bungled the job so much that no one can deny it.
At roughly 2.5 percent growth, the Obama recovery is way below the 4.5 percent average since World War II. And within Obama’s 2.5 percent economy, polling data show high voter anxiety over gas prices, home values and the ability to pay mortgages. Voters even worry that they won’t be able to afford to send their kids to college.
The unemployment rate may have come down to 8.3 percent. But the problem for several years is that discouraged workers have been dropping out of the labor force. So real-world unemployment is considerably higher than the official stats.
And if all this weren’t bad enough for the president, recent economic numbers are going in the wrong direction: Initial jobless claims have increased about 6 percent. Existing homes sales and housing starts have fallen the last two months. Manufacturing, which has been a very positive story (assisted by rock-bottom natural-gas prices from the shale revolution), actually fell last month. And while retail sales continue to be a bright spot, incomes after inflation – including high gas and food prices — may not be keeping up.
