{"id":8767,"date":"2012-09-04T10:41:29","date_gmt":"2012-09-04T17:41:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/?p=8767"},"modified":"2012-09-04T10:41:29","modified_gmt":"2012-09-04T17:41:29","slug":"are-we-better-off","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/2012\/09\/04\/are-we-better-off\/","title":{"rendered":"Are We Better Off?"},"content":{"rendered":"

It surprised me that, when asked if we are better off now than we were four years ago on Sunday, Obama campaign officials fumbled the question.  I would think that a comparison of conditions between Obama\u2019s inauguration and the present, would be a key issue in the campaign.  Lets look first at a Republican view of the issue.<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\"4lyin-ryan\"Paul Ryan delivered a scathing criticism of President Barack Obama\u2019s stewardship of the nation\u2019s economy Monday, arguing that even conservative punching bag Jimmy Carter\u2019s presidency was better as Democrats streamed to North Carolina to nominate Obama for a second term.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe president can say a lot of things and he will,\u201d the Republican vice presidential candidate told more than 2,000 supporters in East Carolina University\u2019s student recreation center, about 230 miles east of the Democratic National Convention site in Charlotte. \u201cBut he can\u2019t tell you that you\u2019re better off. Simply put, the Jimmy Carter years look like the good old days compared to where we are right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

The message, comparing today\u2019s economic problems with the troubled economic conditions of the Carter administration<\/strong>, is part of a broader GOP strategy to ask voters whether they are better off now than they were four years ago. Polling suggests the criticism may resonate with voters who continue to like Obama personally but are frustrated with the pace of economic recovery two months before Election Day\u2026 [emphasis added<\/em>]<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Inserted from <Washington Post<\/a>><\/p>\n

Photo credit: The Republican Oracle<\/a><\/font><\/p>\n

That may sound good, but note that Ryan evaded any actual comparisons between now and four years ago.  There is a very good reason he avoided that.<\/font><\/p>\n

Next, lets look a a Democratic view.<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\"4US-GDP-growth-2008-2012\"<\/p>\n

Democratic Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren, asked Tuesday if Americans were better off than they were four years ago, said people should remember the \u201crecklessness\u201d of Wall Street and the plight of the auto industry.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember what was happening four years ago,\u201d Warren said Tuesday on ABC\u2019s \u201cGood Morning America.\u201d \u201cThe markets were crashing, the financial industry was threatening to seize up, the auto industry was about to plunge over the edge. There was a real question among most economists of whether this country was headed into a full-fledged depression<\/strong>. We have to remember what the recklessness on Wall Street did. It costs trillions of dollars in home value. It costs trillions of dollars in pension value. It cost millions of people their jobs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Warren, who is trailing<\/a> incumbent GOP Sen. Scott Brown in Massachusetts, is set to address the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte on Wednesday night. She has become a liberal hero for her slashing attacks on Wall Street and for designing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau\u2026 [emphasis added<\/em>]<\/p>\n

\"BikiniGraph\"<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Inserted from <Politico<\/a>><\/p>\n

Photo credit: Left Foot Forward<\/a><\/font><\/p>\n

Nobody I have found discussing this issue has more expertise on the economy than Warren, and unlike Ryan she actually used conditions four years ago.  Also note the graph of Gross Domestic Product change.  That bottom tip of the V is where the economy was four years ago.  Only a moron could argue that it has not improved.  The Bikini Graph of job growth tells the same story.<\/font><\/p>\n

Next lets look at what American voters are most likely to be told on the main stream media.<\/font><\/p>\n

\n

\"media60 Percent<\/strong> Of Segments Asked "Are You Better Off Than You Were Four Year Ago" But Provided No Explanation Of Where We Were Four Years Ago<\/strong>. Between August 1 and 26, CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC hosted 35 discussions that attempted to answer the question, "Are you better off than you were four years ago?" In 21 of those discussions — accounting for 60 percent of the segments — no data from 2008 was presented<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Monthly Jobs Data And GDP From 2008 Completely Shut Out Of "Are You Better Off" Conversation. None of the 35 segments mention two key economic indicators from 2008, gross domestic product and monthly employment changes<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Cable News Most Likely To Focus On Debt, Unemployment Rate When Discussing Where The Economy Was Four Years Ago. Cable news hosts and guests were most likely to focus on national debt and the unemployment rate when providing. During the 14 segments that provided context as to where the economy was four years ago, national debt was mentioned nine times, and the unemployment rate was discussed eight times. The financial crisis was mentioned three times, personal income was mentioned twice, and the stock market was mentioned once\u2026<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Inserted from <Media Matters<\/a>><\/p>\n

That is pathetic.  Over sixty percent of news segments present the issue like Ryan did, with no comparative data.  Of the 40% that did, not one presented the most significant data.  Is it any wonder that so many Americans are ignorant on this subject?  So much for the so-called liberal media!<\/font><\/p>\n

We are not completely without media representation.  Last night, Ed Schultz explained why we are better off now than we were four years ago accurately and well.<\/font><\/p>\n

<\/embed><\/object><\/font><\/p>\n

Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news<\/a>, world news<\/a>, and news about the economy<\/a><\/p>\n

Four years ago America was over the cliff and plunging fast.  To make matters worse, the Republican Party got together and recognized that whatever success Obama had in recovering the economy would provide a clear and accurate comparison between the two parties.  The Republicans determined to do everything possible to prevent it, uncaring that they would be harming millions of American families in the process.  In spite of their best efforts at sabotage, Obama and the Democrats stopped the downward plunge and made progress in returning the economy to conditions before Wall Street and the Republican Party trashed it.<\/font><\/p>\n

So are we better off now than we were four years ago?  In good faith, I just cannot say yes.  Yes in insufficient.  Lets try this instead:<\/font><\/p>\n

HELL YES!<\/font><\/h1>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It surprised me that, when asked if we are better off now than we were four years ago on Sunday, Obama campaign officials fumbled the question.  I would think that a comparison of conditions between Obama\u2019s inauguration and the present, would be a key issue in the campaign.  Lets look first at a Republican view […]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8767","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","category-5-id","post-seq-1","post-parity-odd","meta-position-corners","fix"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8767","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8767"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8767\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8767"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8767"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8767"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}