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Subscribe to RSSOver the last few weeks, Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney has argued that President Obama's policies have made the economy worse.
Here was Romney in New Hampshire on Monday:
The people of New Hampshire have waited long enough. They want to see good jobs. They want to see rising incomes. They want to see an economy that's growing again, and the president's failed. He did not cause this recession, but he made it worse.
And he said something similar at the New Hampshire debate earlier this month:
He didn't create the recession, but he made it worse and longer.
But at his press conference today in Allentown, PA -- where he was highlighting a company that had closed, after President Obama touted it benefitting from the stimulus -- Romney backtracked on the he-made-it-worse line.
When NBC producer Sue Kroll asked the former Massachusetts governor why he believes that Obama's policies have made the economy worse -- when the economy is now growing (and not shrinking like it was in 2009), when the Dow is climbing (and no longer in a free-fall like it was in '09), and when the unemployment rate is down a full percentage point from where it was in Oct. '09 -- Romney gave this answer:
I didn't say that things are worse.
Romney went on to say:
What I said was that economy hasn't turned around, that you've got 20 million Americans out of work, or seriously unemployed; housing values still going down. You have a crisis of foreclosures in this country. The economy, by the way, if you think the economy is great and going well, be my guest. But the president of the United States, when he put in place his stimulus plan and borrowed $787 billion, said he would hold unemployment below 8% -- and 8% seemed like an awfully high number. It hasn't been below 8% since. That's failure. We're over 9% unemployment. That's failure. He set the bogie himself at 8% ,which strikes me as a very high number and we're still above that three years later.
*** UPDATE *** About 24 hours after this story was published, the Romney campaign sent First Read this response: “Mitt Romney was responding to the reporter’s comment about the stock market," said spokeswoman Andrea Saul. "If the Democrats are waiting for Mitt Romney to ease up on his criticism of President Obama’s economic record, it’s simply not going to happen. It is an undeniable fact that Barack Obama has failed to create jobs and fix the economy. He is on track to be the only president to leave office with a net job loss. President Obama and the Democrats will spend the next 17 months trying to distract voters from their horrible record on the economy – and it’s not going to work.”
However NBC producer Sue Kroll asked Romney MORE than just about the stock market. Here's what Kroll asked the presidential candidate: "Gov. Romney, you continue to say that the economy is worse. But unemployment is lower than it was in 2009; the stock market was tumbling and is now above 12,000; and it is growing slowly -- we just had 12%, excuse me, 2% gain this quarter. So how do you continue to say that things are worse if they really aren't worse?"
Leave a Comment:
ARLIN --- There is Over $3 TRILLION over seas that wont come back to America because of a 35% tax. We just need to drop that tax rate, but they must reinvest 25% in employees and/or equipment now that is a REAL STIMULUS plan.
If they invest in equipment, it will probably mean MORE jobs lost.
What a loser. This guy will say anything hoping to get elected. How can someone was ran a company which was a corporate raider claim to have created jobs. Give me a break. Ridiculous
He's great at getting people fired not so good at hiring. No wonder MA was in 47th place in job creation under him. He was working outside of his element.
It is amazing to me that some people are so blind that they actually try to support Obama, when history will show he was a horrible President:
1- Obamacare was shoved down our throats! If it is so good why over 1400 waivers? Why so many to Unions?
2- Deficit is killing our jobs while he golfs?
3-Obama's NLRB is pushing jobs over seas (Boeing and the highest corporate tax in the world)
4-Obama gun running scheme is blowing up in his face. ATF fires the whistle blower??????
5-Obama is the food stamp king of every President we have ever had. Unemployment over 9%
Obama is a one term President and thank God.
Edward,
"Obama is a one term President and thank God." Really? Did your God give you a crystal ball, thereby granting you foresight? Can you tell me which horse is gonna win the Kentucky Derby next year?
There were 2.5 million jobs saved or created due to the stimulus, so I guess if you are talking to people who benefited from the stimulus the story is different. But if you like flip floppingthis is the way to go. I wonder what Mitt will say in Michigan?
Maybe you missed it but Mitt did come to Michigan recently and was loudly booed.
Mitt has no ties to Michigan other than the ones his father made. Michiganders, especially auto workers, remember Mitt's stance or better lack of support for the auto company bailouts. After all, Mitt's previous job was to buy troubled companies and then sell them off piece by piece, pocketing the profit and putting the workers on unemployment. To Mitt, saving the auto companies went against his business principles that's why he's so comfortable getting out in public and bashing Obama.
Has anyone heard Mitt provide one concrete plan on what HE will do if elected president? If his past history is any judge of the future then American's can expect him to continue to sell our country off piece by piece until only the corporatist elements remain.
President Obama has to learn the art of creating jobs from our governor in Florida, Rick Scott. Scott rejects projects that can create thousands of jobs and then takes those lost jobs and adds them to the numbers of so called jobs created by Ricky since he took office. It's the new math in my state. A loss equals a gain.
Rick Scott is a criminal and needs to locked up. Florida you really shot yourself in the foot when you elected this weasel.
dangerfield:
Do you think big business sitting on Two trillion dollars and NOT creating jobs is not a conspiracy ? They are holding out as long as possible to make Obama/Dems look bad as the economy ( which the repugs destroyed ) , is there only hope to not get anniliated in 2012? Too bad , it's going to happen anyway.
Hmmm? I don't know? I would tend to think that lack of demand is the major reason they're sitting on cash or have it in other short term investments.
We had a consumer-based economy, which in turn, over the years, came to be based on irresponsible credit and debt. I don't see consumption coming back until past debt has been paid down, personal savings rebuilt, credit restored, based on those savings, leading back to rising consumer demand.
That process will take a long, long time because the trick is that until demand returns, unemployment will remain high and the return of demand is based on jobs returning...i.e. Catch 22. In my opinion, we have to transition the economy back to product manufacturing and exports, and we can build on our existing export base. Where we got into trouble was in attempting to make up the trade deficits via Wall Street junk...first in the form of dot.com stocks and then in securitized subprime mortgages.
Obama is on the right track...which is probably and practically, the only track left: recovery will come through increasing exports, improving education, energy independence and infrastructure improvements.
P.S. Forgot health care reform. Problem there is that it really doesn't matter WHO provides it, it is the cost. Seventeen percent of GDP is too much for ANY nation to be paying for health care, regardless of the delivery means. Money saved in reducing those costs may be redirected into the other areas (e.g. education, energy independence, programs to encourage new export products, infrastructure, etc.).
Personally, I do not see how we can have an efficient health care market, when that market is fragmented into 50 separate state jurisdictions (or sub-markets), each with their own rules and regulations. There are 1300 "state certified" health care insurers, but only a handful (e.g Blue Cross-Blue Shield; United; Aetna; etc.) that dominate the markets and hold a combined 90% market share. These companies have to have high premiums to be able to operate in the multiple sub-markets and carry large overhead. The smaller insurers focus on state markets, with less overhead, but also have to have high premiums to be able to operate with relatively small "pools" of the insurered (i.e. fewer customers).
To a large extent, the history of economic development in this country has been fragmented growth among the states, punctuated by occasional consolidation at the national level, allowing for economies of scale.
Another day, another GOP hopeful backtracking or trying to explain their comments. Maybe if they simply told the truth they wouldn't have to explain anything after the fact.
Romney is not only pathetic but he's a pathetic liar. Mr. flip flop has the nerve to attack the president when he can't maintain a stance on any topic longer than 1 hour. Why would anyone want a guy who has a track record of lying, flip flopping, bad governance, and very poor job creation? Why doesn't he go around MA and tout all of the accomplishments that he supposedly acheived there? Because he didn't have any outside of healthcare which he now runs from.
I watched Romney during his time as governor! He's an inveterate liar! But that is typical of the GOP! Just watch the GOP's campaign rhetoric-- they will accuse Pres. Obama and the Dems of caused all the problems we face when the FACT is that it's the GOP that caused ALL OF THEM--sometimes deliberately-- like the debt crisis!
Do we really want to put the fox back in charge of the chicken coop after he's eaten SO MANY chickens???
After Newt's win you may like my video about his three marriages. Put " watch?v=AQSsMRe6BJE " in the YouTube search bar.
I hope you get a laugh out of it!