Growls

Yesterday, we cited an op-ed in the Washington Times’ commentary section lauding the life of Milton Friedman on the centennial of his birth. However, the commentary section’s front-page featured an op-ed by Steve Forbes, editor-in-chief of Forbes magazine, in which he argued the current economic recovery cannot wait until the November elections.

In view of the June jobs report that left the official unemployment rate at 8.2, among other factors, and leaves the economic recovery “damagingly substandard,” Forbes said:

“What is frustrating is that with elections looming in November, the administration seems interested only in politics, despite having many policy options at its disposal that would immediately boost economic certainty and aid job creation.

“Three such economic policies that Congress should enact this year to improve the economy and make American businesses more competitive are extending bonus depreciation, reforming dividend tax rates and reducing the corporate tax rate.”

Further evidence that we are in a “damagingly substandard” economic recovery can be found in a report from the Republicans on the Joint Economic Committee (JEC) of the U.S. Congress. In a press release, dated July 6, 2012, and titled, “IT'S OFFICIAL: Obama Recovery Now Ranks Dead Last in Modern Times,” Vice Chairman Kevin Brady (R-Texas) argues that “Obama now ranks 10th of 10 recoveries in both jobs & economic growth.” The press release points out:

“With the new June jobs report in hand, President Barack Obama's economic recovery now ranks as the worst in modern times in terms of both job creation and economic
growth, says the GOP leader of Congress's Joint Economic Committee.

“Texas Congressman Kevin Brady, the top Republican on the Joint Economic Committee, observed that the June Employment Report released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics along with the gross domestic product report released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis on June 28th has marked a milestone: President Obama’s economic recovery ranks as dead last in the post-World War II era.

“Since 1945, the United States has had ten economic recoveries that lasted more than one year. In terms of both how fast the U.S. economy has recovered and how many private sector jobs have been created since the recession's low point, President Obama now ranks tenth of ten - that's dead last," said Brady.

“Three years after the recession officially ended in June 2009, we still have more than four million fewer private sector jobs than we did when the recession started,” he  continued. “And for the 41st consecutive month, the unemployment rate has  soared above a discouraging 8%.”

Supporting their argument, the JEC’s Republicans included the following two graphs:

and