In the event you don't have the time nor the inclination to suffer through yet another so-called "jobs" speech by Barack Obama, our friends at the National Republican Senatorial Committee have helpfully put together a primer on what you can expect to hear. Of course, you've heard it all before, time and again, from Obama, Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi.
This crew has spent trillions of dollars since early 2009 and it's accomplished little other than filling up the pockets of their union cronies and resulting in failed "green energy" projects led by Obama's campaign contributors such as Solyndra, which is now under investigation. We suspect the next Attorney General will be very busy unearthing scores of dubious payoffs with your tax money.
Speaking of your money, as of Wednesday we were told Obama's latest risky scheme would cost Americans around $300 billion.
President Obama is planning to propose a jobs program on Thursday that could entail at least $300 billion in tax cuts, local government aid, and spending on infrastructure such as roads and schools as he aims to restore public confidence in his ability to boost the economy.
Magically, that number rose overnight to $400 billion.
Mr. Obama's plan could cost more than $400 billion. The White House hasn't officially released many specifics ahead of the president's speech, but White House Press Secretary Jay Carney on Wednesday made clear the administration expects Congress to agree to at least some of his proposals, and to get results.
Remember how the solons in Washington used to chuckle derisively about fuzzy math? Good times, good times. At the current rate, by the time Obama hits the stage to blame Republicans for his problems tonight the tab should be well past half a trillion dollars, money that we simply do not have.
It's curious how all of a sudden there's some great urgency to begin infrastructure projects. Funny, but I recall America being awash in signage the past couple of years touting the American Recovery and Restoration Act, also known as the stimulus. Well, what happened to all those projects? Why now do we need more? It is possible that money was wasted by union construction crews?
Outside of a tired rehash and a request for more money for failed projects, expect plenty of finger-pointing at the GOP Congress tonight. After all, eight months into their control of Congress they're magically responsible for everything that's happened since January 2009.
None of it is Obama's fault. Reid and Pelosi? Obama never heard of them. It's all John Boehner's fault, along with those evil tea partiers.
In another development leading up to Obama's bluster tonight, jobless claims "unexpectedly" rose again last week. Well, it's only unexpected if you're a Democrat or one of Obama's media drones.
Claims for U.S. unemployment benefits rose last week, a sign the labor market is struggling to gain traction more than two years after the recession ended.
Jobless claims rose by 2,000 to 414,000 in the week ended Sept. 3, Labor Department figures showed today in Washington. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg News projected a drop in claims to 405,000, according to the median forecast. The number of people on unemployment benefit rolls and those receiving extended payments fell.
Companies are stepping up the pace of firings, raising the risk that consumer spending will slow further. Job growth stagnated last month and the unemployment rate was unchanged at 9.1 percent, the Labor Department reported last week. The Labor Department said there was no national effect from Hurricane Irene.
Remember that last part when the time rolls around for Obama to blame Hurricane Irene for the next abysmal yet unexpected jobs reports.
