Jared Bernstein: …. Republicans constantly ply the talking point “discredited stimulus” in the interest of blocking any similar ideas … but the evidence shows the stimulus worked, but ended too soon, before the private sector was ready to walk on its own. The evidence shows we need to do more of these sorts of policy interventions.
…. The first graph shows the growth in real gross domestic product (GDP) from 2007 up until the last quarter. The next picture shows job growth over the same period in both the total job market and excluding government jobs, since the temporary influx of Census working in 2010 distorts the overall series for a few months.
…. they a) present remarkably compelling evidence against the “failed stimulus” case, and b) show that we need to do more of these types of interventions.
…. As the stimulus fades, the positive trends begin to falter: both GDP and job growth slow significantly, and unemployment stagnates at a highly elevated level.
The message of these three simple graphs is itself disarmingly simple: the stimulus worked. It prevented recession from becoming depression. It just ended too soon.
And that’s why the President’s new jobs agenda is so damn important.
Full post here
The Obama Diary 
Republicans lie. The MSM will report this lie over and over again. It becomes accepted fact.
The media believes itself to be an opposition party. White House correspondents cannot hide their hatred of the President and the Administration. They look almost gleeful when they think they got something negative to push. It’s not about facts, it’s about an agenda with all of them. I don’t think there is an honest newsman in that whole vipers nest.
I am not sure there is an honest journalist either, specially covering Washington. And the local papers aren’t much better because they rely, for the most part, on AP which stopped having any journalistic integrity well over a decade ago.
I totally agree! I also think that MSM media has done more damage in misinforming the American people than the Republicans. By the way I also include a great number of the so called new media.
No matter what lies the msm tries to peddle no one can deny that the stimulus worked.
Those graphs how something even more dramatic. Since the Republicans took control of the House and started focusing on budget cutting, the economy has slowed down tremendously. And the unemployment rate has started inching upwards, particularly in states with the wingnut Republican governors and legislatures.
I would love to see the President bring charts like these for the speech and then, to go along with the prior thread, talk about how, since he shows it works, is going ahead with some projects anyway and challenge Congress to find a way to match it.
A lot of the PL is alreayd talking about how he will also focus on deficit reduction which they hate. Well, here are three deficit reducing things he can bring forward which would also promote job growth.
1. Take away the tax loopholes for companies that take their jobs overseas. Right now they can deduct the cost over moving overseas which makes it cost productive for thm to do. If they are going to go, don’t have the American taxpayers subsidize the moves. This would increase revenue, thus helping to reduce the deficit.
2. Give a tax break to small businesses for hiring. The tax break itself does not have to be so high that the tax revenue from the new employee doesn’t offset it, or more, thus increasing revenue again and reducing the deficit.
3, And of course, the biggie. Increase taxes on the people earning $1 million and up. This is a level that mot people really would have no sympthy for, would reduce the deficit, and actually, because of that, would provide revenue to do a lot more spending on infrastructure and the rest.
I don’t think the President would bring visuals with him to the joint session – too Ross Perot-ish. 🙂
But your suggestions are wonderful, just the same!
Too bad there are no “rebate-” type checks to be mailed out at this time from the federal government (anyway, most have direct deposit). These stimulus, etc., charts could be printed on the cover letter, signed by the Secretary of the Treasury. One way to get the “news” out to the American people.
I decided to watch Ed tonight for some reason and he took Marco Rubio to the wood shed over his comments about Medicare and Medicaid. Wow.
Thanks for the heads up – I’ll watch him on the replay. I cannot stand Marco Rubio, who would throw his own 80-something mother (God bless her) under the bus, I guess we’re supposed to believe, and take away her Medicare.
Ms. O”Boomer it is definitely worth watching. Rubio is raising money through his PAC by complaining about Ed and Rachel calling him an extremist. I see a feud between he and Ed in the works. Ed said that if he could get him out of office, he would. Rubio is a novice and he has really opened a can of worms.
Agree, COS – Especially since he’s from Florida, which has a quite large senior population. When you said he’s a “novice,” you called it.
Ed played the clip of what he said at that Nancy Reagan affair and what he said when he was running for that office. It is a huge flip flop. The seniors in Florida need to know what he is about, and that he has voted against everything to help seniors. I have a feeling he is trying to position himself for the VP ticket. I could see the GOP trying to use him to get the Hispanic vote.
Did you see this article on the People’s View about PBO’s poll numbers and how they have been reported?
http://www.thepeoplesview.net/
No, I hadn’t seen that article – thanks!
The Administration should push back on the focus on UER, instead highlight the economy as a whole and then point out that the big companies have the money – sitting on trillions, they’re just sitting on it and the Government can’t make the businesses hire. So rather than give tax cuts to businesses to sit on the trillions, how about raising their taxes and using that money to spur demand by creating jobs through government spending.
It’s still working. On my morning commute to work, I pass through an ARRA street reconstruction site. Thanks to ARRA, much of this busy state route has been rebuilt over the last two years.
These graphs need to go viral, somehow. Lord knows, HoffPo will not post them. They are so anti-P:resident Obama, they only look for negativer things to report.