White House plans more to trim joblessness: aide

[The Northerner]

Source: Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama plans more economic stimulus measures to bring down the high U.S. unemployment rate, while cutting the bulging budget is a longer-term challenge, a top White House economic aide said on Sunday.

"We are ... talking about actions right now to jump-start job creation," White House Council of Economic Advisers Chairwoman Christina Romer said on CNN's "State of the Union.

"You don't get your budget deficit under control at a 10 percent unemployment rate," she said.

Beating back unemployment will be a key yardstick by which U.S. voters will measure Obama's success in November congressional elections and will go a long way to determining his own long-term political future.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20100110/pl_nm/us_usa_economy_jobs

[bluestateguy]

1. A little fiddling with the BLS numbers would work too

Just make sure that the scandal doesn't break until after the 2012 elections.

OK, I was kidding.

[TheWatcher]

4. It's hard to call it kidding when it's something they already do anyway.

[postulater]

2. Here's what Sensenbrenner wrote in his recent newsletter

"I continue to support a two-month tax holiday - so money goes to where it's needed most - the pockets of the people. ... And businesses should not be punished with higher taxes, but rather supported with tax cuts and credits so they are able to hire more poeple and offer better benefits. These are meaningful solutions that have proven results."

I don't see how a tax holiday would help unemployed or create jobs. And I wonder about the 'proven results' of tax cuts in hiring or offering better benefits.

[Jackpine Radical]

7. Sensenbrenner misspoke slightly. He meant to say

"I continue to support a two-month tax holiday - so money goes to where it's needed most - the pockets of the rich."

With Sensie, you just have to understand how he thinks.

[midnight]

25. Smile....

[high density]

8. It would evaporate into nothing just like Bush's stupid $300 checks

People would go to Wal-Mart to buy necessities or Chinese shit.

[laughingliberal]

10. Tax cuts for business if and on IF they are tied to job creation

and I'm not talking some rinky dink per new hire scheme. With that you get companies hiring a worker, firing 'em in a few months, hiring another. I think so much per net increase in employees for a year. Otherwise, business have been hanging jobs over our heads in return for mooching off our infrastructure for years.

[napi21]

13. That's a dumb idea. For low wage workers, not much in taxes is taken

out of their pay anyway, and only the rich would really profit. Beside that, the Fed Debt is bad and the worst thing you can do is eliminate tax money!

[Demeter]

3. Let's See--He's Already Eliminated the Following Stimuli

Universal single payer healthcare

Ending illegal wars

Prosecuting war crimes

Prosecuting civil rights violations (Patriot Act, Habeus Corpus, Supreme Court Selection)

Shutting down Zombie Banks

Prosecuting fraud on Wall St.

Public education

ALL OF THESE ARE LEGITIMATE, NECESSARY FEDERAL DUTIES that are overdue to be addressed. All will require substantial gearing up of professional people and their support staff. All will strengthen the nation. All must be started and continued.

Then, recreating the national manufacturing base and purging the Frankenfoods out of our agriculture, oh, and ending corporate welfare as we know it, will be the next logical steps.

[davidwparker]

11. +1

[undeterred]

19. What are Zombie Banks?

[Demeter]

20. Zombie Banks are insolvent institutions kept alive by infusions of cash from your pocket

Citi, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo, and many smaller ones--any bank that survives because it got bailed out and is on public life support.

[Iowa]

27. Yep...

For banks, corps, and war-mongers he'll gladly opens the spigots. The people get flowery speeches, superficial charm, and a massive corporate-welfare debt to pay off.

[Jackpine Radical]

5. I know how Obama could eliminate poverty in America overnight.

Just lower the poverty line to $20/year.

[DJ13]

6. When he moves beyond desiring jobs to increased manufacturing I'll get excited

Until then theres only so many openings at McDonalds to go around.

[Robbien]

9. The census is going to add 1.2 mil jobs. Temp jobs and of course govt funded

at about $13 bucks an hour for about twenty hours a week.

This will distort employment numbers for a few months.

[wackywaggin]

14. Good Point!

Which I also pointed out several months ago and was ridiculed for my lack of "Obama" support. He continues to disprove all the notions I had about the man when I voted for him. "Fool me once you are the fool ,Fool me twice i'm the fool."

Heretic Wack !

[Donnachaidh]

18. and his administration will tout this as something THEY brainstormed and enacted

PR firms have molded careers out of less horse poo. And BO has some of the best on his staff. :sarcasm:

[MannyGoldstein]

12. Rahmbama Will Hire Goldman Sachs To Do Something Or Other

It will involve enormous amounts of money, and be overseen by someone in government who's already been paid a fortune by Goldman in the past.

Anyone wanna bet against me?

[burf]

15. There is a related article

on this over at Bloomberg. In it Romer talks about giving a tax break to renewable energy companies like Vestas.

"Obama announced Jan. 8 the awarding of $2.3 billion in tax credits intended to reward companies that expand manufacturing of alternative energy technology, such as Vestas Wind Systems A/S and First Solar Inc. The credit was part of the stimulus and the administration forecasts it will create 17,000 jobs."

This wouldn't be the same Vestas that got a load of money from the state and some municipalities in Colorado then furloughed a bunch of workers. would it?

"Vestas Wind Systems is in line to receive about $6 million in state and local incentives at the plants where it plans furloughs or a hiring freeze, according to state and federal reports.

Copenhagen-based Vestas said Monday it would furlough the 500 workers at its Windsor blade factory in the first half of 2010. The company, which also has implemented a hiring freeze at two plants it is finishing in Brighton, has not indicated the length of the furloughs."



Read more: http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_13955791#ixzz0cFggwKQX

Excuse me, but WTF?

[InkAddict]

16. I won't hold my breath

I agree this will probably be more along the lines of tweaking the numbers than actually creating jobs for industries devastated by off-shoring and the Banksters tricks. More of the same...nothing to see here...move along

[OhioChick]

21. Won't be holding my breath, either. n/t

[TomCADem]

17. One Easy Stimulus - Aide To State and Local Governments - They Historically Lag...

...behind the economy as a whole, since they depend on tax revenues. So, even as the private sector recovers, state and local governments are a step behind and laying teachers, cops, etc., off, which is a drag on the private sector. Just do a stimulus targetted at state and local governments to keep them from laying people off, rather than trying to create entirely new jobs.

Why create a new job when states and cities are laying off others to balance the budget.

[GeorgeGist]

22. I had the audacity to hope that Obama would do much better.

[icee]

23. Obama will do nothing. But we may get some formidable speeches and

perhaps a new saying. "Jobs from Jesus", or something else catchy like that.

[notesdev]

24. Please, no more plans

every time we just end up poorer and in worse shape... at this point I'm willing to trust in whatever nature will deal us rather than be subjected to another hairbrained politician's latest crazy idea.

[Iowa]

28. I agree...

Every time I read a news flash that involves the words "Obama" and "plan", I have been conditioned to expect pain... bad for me, my family, and my community; good for plutocrats and police-state advocates. It's the same sickening feeling I used to get whenever I read a news blurb that contained the words "Bush" and "plan".

Three more years to gut it out. Grayson/Kucinich 2012.

[lib2DaBone]

26. We need 30 Million new jobs for full employment....

We can't even stop outsourcing or union busting... let alone create 30 million new jobs.

The American worker is the LAST thing on the mind of our leaders in Washington.

How can things improve when there has been no attempt to change the conditions that create jobs?

[Name removed]

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