Halfway to double-dip recession, Obama still Indifferent

Halfway to double-dip recession, Obama still Indifferent

can of peasNegative fourth quarter GDP has tge U.S. on track for an official double-dip recession by April Fool’s Day. President Obama’s agenda? Anything and everything but economic growth, jobs, and allowing Americans to bail themselves out of poverty.

To characterize the economic reality of the nation between Obama Inaugurals as a “recovery” has always been Orwellian, despite the technical accuracy of the term beginning with positive GDP growth from the third quarter of 2009 through the third quarter of 2012. Average economic growth during those 13 quarters of 2.0% (less than two-thirds of the post-WWII average) never saw unemployment drop below 7.8%, nor the actual number of employed Americans exceed those with jobs at the end of 2008.

Now comes news that the Bernanke-quantitative-easing-for-Big-Business-stocks economy actually contracted while President Obama blamed Bush for the economy, a video for Benghazi, Romney for Bain Capital murders, and Boehner for fiscal cliffs; and, yes, was re-hired to continue more of the same:

The U.S. economy posted a stunning drop of 0.1 percent in the fourth quarter, defying expectations for slow growth and possibly providing incentive for more Federal Reserve stimulus.

The economy shrank from October through December for the first time since the recession ended, hurt by the biggest cut in defense spending in 40 years, fewer exports and sluggish growth in company stockpiles.

The Commerce Department said Wednesday that the economy contracted at an annual rate of 0.1 percent in the fourth quarter. That’s a sharp slowdown from the 3.1 percent growth rate in the July-September quarter.

The surprise contraction could raise fears about the economy’s ability to handle tax increases that took effect in January and looming spending cuts.

Someone with the Associated Press who wishes to remain anonymous added the editorial commentary surrounding the, as usual, “unexpected” negative GDP number; as if “expected” 1.0 growth would have been cause for continued cheer-leading of Obama’s stewardship of the economy.  And of course, we all remember when Democrat Happy Days we(a)re Here Again before defense cuts and during the four straight years of trillion dollar deficit stimuli aka President Barack Hussein Obama’s first term. Obama is now poised to beat FDR (1938, after being first inaugurated in 1933) to a double-dip r(de)ec(pr)ession by at least nine months, sans the fireside chats.

But not to worry, just as the “only thing we had to fear was fear itself” five years after Herbert Hoover left the White House, if only the Republican House will let 11 million illegal immigrants vote, Diane Feinstein seize scary-looking guns and the EPA finish off coal mining and joy riding, food stamp nation will be happy in their envy of the rich that still don’t pay their fair share in taxes despite the 14% increase on New Year’s Day.

It turns out that FDR’s “fear itself” were the same genre of anti-business Democrat policies also keeping good jobs-producing capital on the Atlas Shrugging sidelines in the Age of Obama.

With one in six Americans in poverty and under-employment at double-digit depression-era levels for the fourth straight year, it is doubtful that economic conditions could get sufficiently worse for  a president content to battle poverty with Obamaphones and free birth control pills, to reverse course and discover his inner supply-side. Little better chance that Senate Democrats have the inclination, much less the courage to challenge Obama. No chance for a minority GOP to impose change.

The good news? It appears the First Lady may be on a sabbatical from school lunch starvation diet advocacy. If only parents could afford low sodium name-brand peas, much less hearty 3-4 course meals.

“One man with courage makes a majority.” – Andrew Jackson

Mike DeVine

Mike DeVine

Mike DeVine is a former op-ed columnist at the Charlotte Observer and legal editor of The (Decatur) Champion (legal organ of DeKalb County, Georgia). He is currently with the Ruf Law Firm in Atlanta Metro and conservative voice of the Atlanta Times News.

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