Are You Better Off?

The Times explains the Obama answer to the famous "Are you better off than you were four years ago?" question. The short version - things could suck even harder. Hmm, let's go to the long version:

But if Mr. Romney believes the “Are you better off?” question will be political kryptonite for President Obama, he will have to reckon with an economic scorecard that is more mixed than he and other Republicans are claiming on the campaign trail. American voters, too, have more complicated feelings about their fortunes, and those of their children, than they did when Mr. Reagan first posed the question.

“People are not better off than they were four years ago, in the sense of where the economy is today compared to where it was,” said Kenneth S. Rogoff, a professor of economics at Harvard, ticking off statistics from the unemployment rate to housing prices. “But certainly, things could have been a lot worse. You can decide whether the glass is half-empty or half-full.”

The half-full argument, which the Obama campaign will promote at the Democratic convention here this week, holds that the economy is far stronger than it was at the depths of the recession in early 2009 when it was bleeding 800,000 jobs a month.

...

“We avoided falling into the abyss, and it was an open question whether we would,” said Lawrence H. Summers, who was Mr. Obama’s chief economic adviser until the end of 2010. “It may not be easy to explain, but it’s right. It’s the truth.”

Uh huh - the car has settled at the bootom of the ravine, it has quit rolling, and it has not burst into flames. Exhale! But no, we are not better off than before the car went over the cliff.

Eventually the Times re-connects with reality:

Voters, though, seem squarely on the half-empty side. Only 20 percent of those surveyed think their financial circumstances are better now than four years ago, while 39 percent think they are worse off, according to a CBS News poll conducted in August. That is just as pessimistic as during the financial meltdown a month before the 2008 election.

Moreover, 47 percent of those polled in April by The Times and CBS News think things are likely to get worse rather than better for the next generation of Americans, while only 24 percent think things will improve. That is also worse than when Mr. Obama took office, when 32 percent said the future would be worse.

But on the other other hand, a bit of pessimism is par for the public:

But, as pollsters note, Americans have consistently expressed pessimism about the future, regardless of whether a Democrat or a Republican was in office. In three decades of polling by The Times and CBS News, only during the last year of Bill Clinton’s presidency did a solid plurality — 44 percent — of people voice optimism about the next generation.

Even in the final year of Mr. Reagan’s presidency, in July 1988, 59 percent of people said the future would be “bogged down” by troubles rather than brighter.

"Vote Obama! It Could Have Been Worse!" has quite a ring to it.

Comments

[Danube of Thought]

The voters are coming to grips with reality. Government at all levels has made promises it can't possibly keep, and addressing that unavoidable problem is going to cause pain--and a declining living standard.

[narciso]

What is the point of this, fish scales chafe, and dogs itch, with this;

http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-democrats-convention-attacks-romney-20120904,0,5314186.story

[narciso]

There was a brief downturn in 1987-88, that the media harped on relentlessly, recall the plant closing notification legislation, from that time.

[jorod]

I want to pay more taxes, don't you.

[sailor]

No.

[Melinda Romanoff]

Jim Pethokoukis concisely explains how Clinton got away with his tax hike. He got lucky.

[Barbara]

from Narciso's link @10:32am

“Like many of you, I watched last week’s Republican convention,” Castro said, “and they told a few stories of individual success. We all celebrate individual success. But the question is how do we multiply that success? The answer is President Barack Obama.” (emphasis mine)

Julian Castro, keynote speaker

The democrats are delusional.

[NJ Jan]

This may be ot but why have first ladies been elevated to such importance? They are not elected and have no job, yet they are given large staff, offices and play with a pet project at taxpayer expense but are accountable to no one. I may not be right but I believe this all started with Jackie Kennedy. They are spouses of someone who is elected, that is all. Am I missing something?

[narciso]

No, they are not, they are the Inner Party and as such insulated from the decisions they make, when San Antonio starts suffering brownouts, because they replaced nuclear with
Solar, they will come up with another diversion,

[Dave (in MA)]

Barbara, I forget which site it was last night that said it, but imagine if the R's had their night's keynote delivered by a mayor named Hitler.

[Jim Ryan]

Of course there are successful people. But what about the people who didn't stay through until high school graduation, who didn't stay off drugs, who didn't avoid pregnancy out of wedlock, and who didn't manage to hold a job? What about them? What about their American dream? See, I have a vision of American in which everybody gets to live his dream.

[NK]

MelR-- thanks for that Pethokoukis link. As usual he is the Greek Economic Oracle and is exactly right. The Perjurer did leave 2 booby-traps behind though-- expanded CRA lending and a Crony Dem-run Fannie who were perverting the home mortgage market. Mix in AlanG's 2002 interest rates and ROI seeking Bankers, voila the meltdown. We are so far from 1999-- $1 gas, 4% unemployment, Fed spending at 18% of GDP, 4%+ GDP growth -- it's depressing. But, I can make a case for optimism-- Fannie/Bankers and then Bam screwed things up so badly, they can only get better from here. Energy prices drop, Obamacare repealed, Fed Gov't spending cut... IF those things happen, employment and growth will rebound. But they will only happen if Bam and Dirty Harry are booted in November.

[Melinda Romanoff]

NK-

The worst was the SCOTUS precedent that allowed back dating of the Estate tax, and an IRS clawback. Suxed.

[Jane - Get off the couch your country needs you!]

I don't have time to read all the comments now but we are still resonating!

[narciso]

They don't care, what the facts are, Krugman was pumping up a property bubble, the idiot at Melinda's link is utterly oblivious of reality, and he makes Baby Max Planck cry.

[fdcol63]

I have a dream ..... that Obama and the Dems lose in such a landslide this November that they NEVER recover their credibility or political viability.

[Comanche Voter]

Well you can quibble over the question of whether the glass is half full or half empty.

But there's no denying that any New York Times analysis is always half assed.

[Barbara]

Dave,

The liberal/progressives really are scraping the bottom of the barrel for comments, aren't they. No facts, just assertions, blanket claims of success, wild accusations and amateurish name calling.

[fdcol63]

Half assed, but completely biased. LOL

[narciso]

You're still being too charitable, Comanche.

[jimmyk]

They are not elected and have no job, yet they are given large staff,

Didn't I read here that Michelle's staff is enormous compared to Laura Bush's? (And yes, there are other things of Michelle's that are enormous compared to Laura's, but let's not go there.)

[narciso]

Now this just makes me, and I imagine Ignatz
a little sad;

http://www.jammiewf.com/2012/dncs-secret-mystery-guests-trio-of-empty-headed-actresses/

[Janet]

Another point about MO's speech last night. She talked about how poor her & Obama were with their student loans & a mortgage...well how were they able to handle Obama going off to Bali to write Dreams? Who paid for THAT trip? Michelle might have gone too...we don't know. Both versions have been reported in the MFM.

[jimmyk]

“We avoided falling into the abyss, and it was an open question whether we would,” said Lawrence H. Summers

If we're going to get to invent alternative scenarios, how about the one where the economy actually recovers from a deep recession as under Reagan? So we're better off than some imaginary "abyss," but worse off compared to a recovery that should have been possible.

[Melinda Romanoff]

I don't get that one narciso. Who's the idiot?

[Ignatz]

Ed Morrissey asks a good question.
If the weather is fine during Barry's indoor speech will any enterprising reporters take some pics of 72,000 dry and empty chairs?
Any North Carolinian JOMers in that vicinity?

[jimmyk]

Now this just makes me, and I imagine Ignatz a little sad

I'm going to predict that the word "like" shows up in their word clouds, as in, like, you know, I'm like excited about Barry.

Hillary is going to have her hands full trying to keep Bill in line.

[Jim,MtnViewCA,USA]

The supine coverage of the DemCon is making me ill.

Speaking of the media, I love this math-challenged quote from a Hill article:
"...[the indoor arena] holds less than half the amount of people the stadium does — 22,000 to the stadium’s 73,000"

22K vs. 73K, yeah, well technically that is "less than half"...but I think most people with 5th grade competence in arithmetic would come up with "less than a third" as a comparison.

[narciso]

The world is not only flat, it rides a top a giant turtle;

Max Planck | September 5, 2012 at 10:35 am

“That sure seems like a rebuke of Clintonomics as much as Reaganomics and Bushonomics.”

Maybe it is, especially since Mr. Clinton himself has expressed remorse over the repeal of Glass Steagall and the castration of the CFTC at Greenspan’s, Rubin’s and Arthur Levitt’s hands. Mr. Levitt has also apologized for his actions towards Ms. Brooksley Born in this matter.

This quote is partcularly devoid of logic in it’s false narrative:

“Given the head of steam Reagan gave the 1990s, plus the fall of the Soviet Union and the Internet boom and declining energy prices, it may have been impossible to mess up that decade — even with tax hikes.”

The “head of steam” (sic) Reagan built up through tripling the deficit, and a 1300 basis point drop in the overnight funds rate courtesy of Mr. Volcker, was exhausted by the time George Bush Sr. headed into office. Unfortunately, the ill conceived TEFRA 1986 had caused several problems in many sectors, and that was to make Bush, Sr. a one term President .

The “internet boom” meme is a common one used in conservative circles as metaphorical catch basin for Clinton’s economic record. There are two flaws with this myth:

1) Tech only accounted for 8% of job creation during the Clinton boom

2) Technology is just as liable to COST jobs as well as create them. We see this even today.

Lastly, the “tech boom” meme doesn’t explain the employment picture throughout the entire economy. Even McDonald’s had to hike wages to compete for workers because it was one of the few times the employee was in the catbird seat. Labor demand was so brisk, “NAIRU” was on everyone’s lips.

You can’t assign that to the “tech boom.”

Moreover, a simple check on item #2, the “big drop” in oil prices (Gulf War hangover) which culminated in 1998, doesn’t explain the sharp drop in unemployment PRIOR to that year. There’s no correlation for Mr. Pethokoukis to hang his hat on here.

I find these folk tales highly amusing. They are designed to comfort the reader and further esconsce him in his comfy bassinet of warmed over prejudices, reinforcing false certainties.
Reply ↓

[fdcol63]

Jim, all they know is "New Math". LOL

[Ignatz]

Was just going to link that story narciso.
How pathetic can you get?
Three little airheads, one of whom most people have never even heard of.
Go ahead, make Clint laugh.

[hit and run]

narciso:
Now this just makes me, and I imagine Ignatz
a little sad

Yes. Let's give Natalie Portman a microphone at the convention.

By the time she steps off stage, there will already be a youtube of her appearance showing her to be saying these words: "So this is how liberty dies...with thunderous applause".

Excellent.

[Jim Ryan]

How bitterly ironic the cheering of those who want to save the country from bankruptcy will be on election night with a Romney win and a failure to turn the Senate to the GOP. That is, if picking up the Senate is necessary to avoiding the brick wall. Is it?

[Sue]

I wonder how removing God from their platform is going to play? I'm in deep red country, smack dab in the middle of the Bible belt, so I'm probably not a good barometer on what people are talking about. But I'll tell you right now, taking God out of their platform has set off a firestorm around these parts.

[Jim Eagle]

NJ Jan,

Not Jackie but more relevant - Eleanor Roosevelt! Bess Truman and Mamie Eishenhower were quite then came Jackie and Lady Bird. Its been downhill ever since except perhaps with Laura Bush who stayed as much out of the limelight that she could.

Moochelle is a typical moocher and using the free ride to make herself more important than she really is to most of us. But the press love her since they need have celebrity copy for the idle brainless.

[pagar]

"But the question is how do we multiply that success? The answer is President Barack Obama.”

Pure BS!

[Jim,MtnViewCA,USA]

JimR: "...a failure to turn the Senate to the GOP."

Any indications that the RNC will get off their high horse and give Akin a hand?

[matt]

LUN. Forbes says the NYT may just have put a few more nails in the coffin of the Obama campaign.

Ultra competitive, way too deep in the weeds on details, micromanager, incompetent. unfocused.

And this is the Times saying this on their front page.

[Danube of Thought]

Raz:

"A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that 43% of Likely U.S. Voters would vote for the Republican in their district’s congressional race if the election were held today, while 42% would choose the Democrat instead."

[Rob Crawford]

But the question is how do we multiply that success? The answer is President Barack Obama.

Only if the goal is to multiply it by a factor less than 1.

[Ranger]

That is, if picking up the Senate is necessary to avoiding the brick wall. Is it?

Actually, controlling the Senate is not required. Without an actual budget resolution, the Executive has a huge amount of power over how money gets spent. That means a President Romney could kill Obamacare in all but name by simply refusing to spend any money on it and granting a universal waiver to its requirements. Now, a universal waiver like that is probably not technically constitutional, but the Dems have no leg to stand on given the way Obama has acted over the last 4 years.

If Republicans really wanted to play hardball, congress could simply refuse to raise the debt limit. At that point the president gets to decide what is "essential" and gets funded with the limited new income stream, and what is not. I have a strong feeling that Obamacare would be non-essential.

[fdcol63]

Zero X 0 = Diddly Squat.

Not the Answer!

[pagar]

"I wonder how removing God from their platform is going to play? "

How are Black preachers going to demand their audience vote for people who have now told them they do not believe in God?

How is Dem Clyburn-SC and the Others in the party lawmakers going to justify the removal of God from their Party?

[LindaF]

The glass is ALWAYS full - sometimes of water, sometimes of air, sometimes 1/2 & 1/2.

With Obama, the glass is ALWAYS filled with air - hot air - from the Big Blowhard.

[Jim Ryan]

Jim, no sign of that (thanks for mentioning Akin, by the way, and I hope we can turn this into an Akin thread). I'm worried about Brown and Allen.

[Rob Crawford]

How are Black preachers going to demand their audience vote for people who have now told them they do not believe in God?

I believe the answer is known as "walking-around money".

Someone with more talent should put together a piece contrasting the "removal of God" from their platform to the material being sold at the convention that compares Obama with Christ. Perhaps they removed God so as to not compete with The Won?

[Captain Hate]

From the prior thread:

Come on, CH--you know you'll have your eyes glued to RG3.

That may happen, DoT, but I'm strangely ambivalent to the upcoming season in a way that I can't remember ever being before.

[Jane - Get off the couch your country needs you!]

I can't imagine that "we are definitely much better off now that 4 years ago" will help Obama. I hope they keep saying it.

They said they were going to change the venue depending on the weather forecast. So what is the weather forecast for tomorrow in Charlotte? Anyone close enough to check out. We, of course know they couldn't fill the venue. I wonder if they will even get 20,000. That's a lot of buses. BTW the convention floor is 1/3 the size of the floor at the republican convention.

[Jim,MtnViewCA,USA]

"...I hope we can turn this into an Akin thread.."

I won't go that far :)
But seriously, is Akin so much worse compared to other candidates supported by RNC money--
say, Lincoln Chafee? For the historically minded, which is the worse Repub candidate (financially supported by RNC) for Senate in recent years?

[Jane - Get off the couch your country needs you!]

Is Clarice out of town?

[NJ Jan]

Simple question from Charlotte weatherman
https://twitter.com/wxbrad/status/243351985414340609

[Rob Crawford]

I can't imagine that "we are definitely much better off now that 4 years ago" will help Obama. I hope they keep saying it.

Keep in mind that for the apparat, it's true. They're the ones profiting from the expansion of government -- they have bigger salaries, bigger budgets, more power.

[Jim Ryan]

Jim, what I heard from Missourians on call-in shows was that Akin was fine until the unpleasantness. So, yes, they should fund him in my opinion.

[Jim Eagle]

Matt,

I posted the NY Times Jody Kantor article on Zero and his reaching the Peter Principle level of incompetentcy on the prior thread. It was double-devastating coming from Pinch. They are still cleaning up the hari-kari mess on the West Side.

[Jim Ryan]

Akin may be a fool but he will help pass tighter budgets and get rid of Zerocare.

[Stephanie]

Time for #EmptyStadiumDay .

Post pictures of the empty stadium 'Eastwooding' on FB, Twitter, and elsewhere.

Pose questions to the empty stadium about how much better we all are than four years ago and how awesome Obama is, etc...

Time for a little more Alinsky. :D

[Some Guy]

I'm actually quite pleased that the NFL gave in and moved the game to tonight.

I don't believe that the One has a clue about what needs to be said tomorrow, and I don't believe he would listen to any adviser who did know.

Remember, with these guys it's all "more cowbell!", and you should never interrupt someone making your point for you. So let's hear more cowbell!

[Threadkiller]

Akin threads are tiresome...

" Many reference British Common Law in search for a definitive answer as to the meaning of natural born, and resolve, by that Common Law, the definition of natural born to result from birth on the native soil of a country. Justice Gray does a thorough job of delving into British history in the landmark case of U.S. vs. Wong Kim Ark, 169 U.S. 649 (1898), even going back to Lord Coke and Calvins case (1608), some 180 years before this nations founding, and preceding the Ark decision by 290 years.

However, in truth, Lord Cokes decision in Calvins case is as fundamentally alien to these United States founding principles as the rest of British Common Law citizenship. Calvins case was landmark in its day, and the early modern common-law mind, for being the first to articulate a theoretical basis for territorial birthright citizenship. Calvins Case was not only influential in establishing the citizenship right of American colonials, but also was much later argued as the basis common-law rule for U.S. birthright citizenship. Calvin's Case is the earliest, most influential theoretical articulation by an English court of what came to be the common-law rule that a person's status was vested at birth, and based upon place of birth.

However this recognition of British common law also ignores the inherent conflicts with the fundamental tenets of our Constitution, conflicts so profound philosophically that they were causal in the Revolutionary War and War of 1812. In Cokes decision, the law of the Creator is conflated with the law of England and being lain down via edict to the common man from that divine Crown through the judiciary. Even as described by Justice Gray in Wong Kim Ark, the Coke decision involves feudal concepts of “ ‘ligealty,’ ‘obedience,’ ‘faith,‘ or ‘power’ of the ‘King’”. This feudal oblige and extension of the dominion of the Crown to ANY territory held by the King, even making “natural born subjects” of those born in America, contributed to British settlers leaving Britain in the first place and ultimately became a primary factor in the "Declaration of Independence", with colonists declaring themselves free of such an involuntary burden of the Crown while having no protection and no representation...."

http://obamareleaseyourrecords.blogspot.com/2012/09/natural-born-defined-natural-born.html?m=1

[Danube of Thought]

A weatherman tweets:

"It's a simple question.. if you had a #Panthers game, Concert or Soccer match with a 20% chance of storms would you cancel 24hrs prior?"

[NJ Jan]

Jane,

According to weatherman I posted above (his statement,not thhe actual man), calling for 20% chance of rain. Weather Channel saying 30%

[Jane - Get off the couch your country needs you!]

They're the ones profiting from the expansion of government -- they have bigger salaries, bigger budgets, more power.

That's fine, but there are not enough of them to re-elect him.

[Danube of Thought]

"This feudal oblige and extension of the dominion of the Crown to ANY territory held by the King, even making 'natural born subjects' of those born in America, contributed to British settlers leaving Britain in the first place and ultimately became a primary factor in the 'Declaration of Independence', with colonists declaring themselves free of such an involuntary burden of the Crown while having no protection and no representation...."

None of which changes the meaning of "natural born" as they understood it and used it in the constitution.

[NJ Jan]

DOT

I posted the same tweet from the weather man. The comments posted below his comment are equally worthwhile

[hit and run]

NJ Jan:
According to weatherman I posted above (his statement,not thhe actual man), calling for 20% chance of rain. Weather Channel saying 30%

20% chance beginning at 10AM tomorrow.
40% chance beginning at 1PM
30% chance beginning at 4PM
20% chance beginning at 10PM

[NJ Jan]

That was fast ...
http://twitchy.com/2012/09/05/emptystadiumday-obama-didnt-fill-that/

[Extraneus]

Isn't The Weather Channel the org who said that global warming skepticism is grounds for pulling a meteorologist's license, or whatever document they supposedly have?

Look for the rain prediction to go up dramatically.

[NJ Jan]

Thanks, Hit and Run.

[Jane - Get off the couch your country needs you!]

Stephanie,

I started it (or seconded you, if you started it.)

[Rick Ballard]

Sue,

The deletion does not hurt Obama with the atheist/agnostic segment. It may even stir lagging voting intent. Obama certainly doesn't want to encourage turnout among churchgoers - he's losing the white highly moderately religious 28/65 while winning white atheists/agnostics 68/26. The feelings of religious blacks don't have a damned thing to do with how they actually vote. They're far too used to the weight of Dem chains on the plantation and the worst outcome for the Dem overseers is only the necessity of using a heavier whip to drive the reluctant to the polls.

[hit and run]

If only the convention had been scheduled for next week Gaia didn't hate Democrats.

Chance of rain in Charlotte Monday the 10th through Thursday the 13th?

0%

[Sue]

There are tree huggers chained to trees in Eastern Hopkins County, protesting the Keystone Pipeline. One of my facebook friends asked a very important question. Who the hell is going to see their protest? Our local on the scene reporter is on his way to take pictures. Teeheeheee...

[Stephanie]

On the busing in of supporters to an empty stadium: "You didn't fill that. Somebody else filled that for you."

from the comments at the twitchy above...Snort!

[Stephanie]

I don't know who started #EmptyStadiumDay. By the time I got to the computer to post my suggestion, the twitchy looks to have been in full swing.

[matt]

Rick;

The African American community has been insulted by the president's capitulation on gay marriage; they have taken an inordinate hit from the current recession; and now God has disappeared from the party platform.

In addition, the illegal immigration issue affects the AA community the most. Whole swathes of inner city Los Angeles, for example, have gone Latino and pushed the AA community to the suburbs.

This is where a lot of loan fraud occurred, and where the foreclosure rates are highest. The poor always take the hardest hit.

At some point even Jesse Jackson must say enough is enough.

[Melinda Romanoff]

Anybody else notice that ratings were lighter for the 1st night of the DNC than the 1st night of the RNC?

[Gus]

Nothing from nothing leaves nothing.

This should be ZERO'S campaign slogan.

[NJ Jan]

Media convention schedule

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/dana-milbank-a-media-lovefest-in-charlotte/2012/09/04/574e2d10-f6d4-11e1-8b93-c4f4ab1c8d13_story.html?wprss=rss_opinions

[Gus]

70,000 plus EMPTY CHAIRS Thursday.
Maybe the GOP should hire Clint Eastwood to speak to all those empty chairs!

[peter]

Great point on the Bali trip, Janet. Michelle's whole speech needs to be fisked. HOw come I never heard of the car with the rusted out floor before? How did that car pass inspection? So many lies, so little time.

[Captain Hate]

Debbie Does-This-Podium-Hide-My-Ass caught in another whopper: http://washingtonexaminer.com/dws-attacks-examiner-for-deliberately-misquoting-her-but-heres-the-audio/article/2506980?custom_click=rss#.UEd_GJYuiSo

[Stephanie]

Time for an #EmptyBarcalounger photoshop, Mel?

You know this meme has the potential for lots of mischief.

#EmptyBarcalounger showing CNN on the TV.
#EmptyBarcalounger showing MSNBC on the TV.

[Janet]

What a great idea Gus!!! There should be a giant Tea Party rally at the football stadium!!

[Porchlight]

"It's a simple question.. if you had a #Panthers game, Concert or Soccer match with a 20% chance of storms would you cancel 24hrs prior?"

Another question reporters won't ask: given that this type of forecast is typical of Charlotte in September, why was BofA Stadium ever chosen in the first place?

And I'm still waiting for the DNC to tell us how they are going to handle the 50,000 ticketholders for Thursday night who will now not be able to get in. What happens to the hotel rooms booked by those people? Surely Charlotte's hotel industry would like to know. There are buses coming in from all over the state and region, or so we were told. Are they going to be told to stay home, or come to Charlotte anyway and take their chances? Is it general admission at the new venue? If so, how will the city handle the thousands waiting patiently who will not be able to enter the venue or see the speech?

Obama fans heading to Charlotte want to know. Don't they?

[Danube of Thought]

MelR--tell us more about the ratings.

[Stephanie]

Just how much money did the move from BoA stadium to the new venue cost the Obama campaign? The news networks? The Stadium staff?

Why do the democrats hate the stadium workers?

[Jane - Get off the couch your country needs you!]

Sheesh we are going to keep up these hashtags thru the election.

[Rick Ballard]

"Obama fans heading to Charlotte want to know. Don't they?"

Porchlight,

That presumes they ever existed. Think of them as having the same status as improvement in economic well being since Obama's inauguration.

There really isn't a problem, is there?

[Ranger]

Friday should be an interesting view of how corrupted out Federal Government has become. Gallup pointed out that their estimates showed unemployment staying the same or rising by .1%. BLS called unemployment in July 8.3% in large part because of seasonal adjustment. Gallup pointed out that without that adjustment, unemployment was 8.6%.

Last year there was no BLS seasonal adjustment for August, which means that this Friday, if unemployment remains unchanged in raw numbers, it will jump up to 8.6%. If there is a seasonal adjustment, someone at BLS needs to explain why one was needed this year, when none was required last year. I exspect an adjustment of just enough to keep unemployment from going up the day after Obama's speech. If that's the case, then we know the beurocrats are rigging the game for the party of government.

[Sue]

This is why I love the internet. My mind never even went to this place. Mitt Romney blamed for the death of Mary Soptic. Ted Kennedy eulogized at the DNC convention. What a country!!!!

[Porchlight]

Here's something on the ratings, but they don't compare them directly to the first night of the 2012 RNC. They only compare them to DNC ratings from 2008 (double digit drop, no surprise there).

I think you can safely conclude that the RNC ratings from last Tuesday must have been higher.

http://www.deadline.com/2012/09/tv-ratings-democratic-convention-coverage-drops-double-digits-for-networks-michelle-obama-gop-hells-kitchen-masterchef-americas-got-talent-down/

[Melinda Romanoff]

DoT-

Here are the DNC #'s for the "Big 3" (scroll down)

Here are the RNC's 1st night #'s (also scroll down)

FNC was much higher for the RNC, but these are the only metrics I can find, for the moment.

[Stephanie]

Someone with some photoshop skillz should do an Elizabeth Warren in indian headdress inserted into that BoA stadium pic... woo woo woo woo, woo woo woo woo!

I really need to learn photoshop, but the daughter has the full Adobe package on her laptop and I never get access to it. :(

[Porchlight]

That presumes they ever existed.

That was what I was trying to dig at with "don't they?" No, they don't. These ticketholders are mythical. The DNC knows it and the MSM know it.

But it would be nice if someone would ask about it anyway, and not let the DNC get away with pretending it was all about the weather.

[Extraneus]

Pentagon fails to comply with law to help overseas soldiers vote

[NK]

Ranger@12:47-- for lots of institutional reasons, I think BLS will not invoke 'seasonal adjustments', instead they will fudge the labor participation rate in the Household Survey to keep unemployment at 8.3%. That's my guess.

[Rick Ballard]

Matt,

The decision to make the convention Abortionfest 2012, coupled with the President's "Gay for Pay" initiative, could be read as spitting all over the religious black community. That's the way I read it - only the black turnout numbers in November can determine whether blacks have taken the Dem message to heart. My bet is they'll allow themselves to be whipped to the polls again.

[Rob Crawford]

At some point even Jesse Jackson must say enough is enough.

And risk losing his political protection?!

[Stephanie]

The O campaign had a volunteer thing going on in Charlotte that if you volunteered you got tix... think those fools are gonna be miffed or are they too stupid to be upset?

[hit and run]

Porch:
That was what I was trying to dig at with "don't they?" No, they don't. These ticketholders are mythical.

Did the hotels and restaurants and places of business plan for 70K+ attendees? Did the city of Charlotte base their bid to secure the convention based on an economic impact calculation that assumed 70K+ attendees for Obama's speech?

[Stephanie]

All Obama had to do was give his speech whilst holding his 2 iron. Wait, what?