The Key Economic Facts Obama’s Recovery Narrative Ignores

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President Barack Obama took an economic victory lap in Elkhart, Indiana, on Wednesday.

In a major speech he argued his policies have brought the economy back. He blamed remaining economic weaknesses on trends preceding his administration.

This analysis has the economic facts precisely backwards: Economic growth benefitted Americans up and down the income distribution until the Great Recession. Since then, Americans have struggled considerably.

Obama argued his policies have brought the economy back. While labor market conditions have certainly improved from the depths of the recession—the official unemployment rate has even returned to pre-recession levels—these numbers do not tell the whole story.

Millions of working-age Americans stopped looking for work during the recession. Many have not returned to the labor market. The working-age labor force participation rate remains 2 percentage points below pre-recession levels. The government does not count these ex-workers as unemployed— even if they would have jobs in a stronger economy.

This explains why the unemployment rate has officially recovered in the Elkhart metropolitan area despite it still having fewer jobs today than in 2007.

Workers also take significantly longer to find new jobs today. The average jobless worker still spends over six months unemployed. This recovery has gone far slower than the White House promised when proposing Obama’s recovery plan.

Obama argues pre-existing trends caused this economic weakness:

… where we haven’t finished the job, where folks have good reason to feel anxious, is addressing some of the longer-term trends in the economy—that started long before I was elected—that make working families feel less secure. These are trends that have been happening for decades now and that we’ve got to do more to reverse.

This argument rewrites economic history.

Until the recession family incomes were growing up and down the income ladder. Congressional Budget Office data show market incomes for the middle quintile of (non-elderly) households grew by a third between 1979 and 2007.

Other academic economists estimate higher middle class income growth over that period. Market incomes for families in the bottom quintile grew even faster—by more than 50 percent.

Unsurprisingly, most Americans were happy with the state of the economy then. In February 2007, Gallup polled Americans‘ perceptions of the state of the economy. Forty-three percent said “excellent” or “good.” Only 16 percent answered “poor.”

Then the recession hit and the recovery dragged on. Between 2007 and 2011, middle class households’ market incomes dropped by a tenth (the Congressional Budget Office data only goes through 2011). More Americans today tell Gallup they think the economy is in poor shape than in excellent or good condition. It’s hard to blame this newfound dissatisfaction on long-term trends.

The president argued his administration deserves credit for the recovery thus far. If so, he has engineered the weakest recovery of the post-war era. (For more from the author of “The Key Economic Facts Obama’s Recovery Narrative Ignores” please click HERE)

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Hillary’s Foreign Policy Speech: Trump Is Dangerously Unfit for Office

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Why, yes, come to think of it, this does sound like a Marco Rubio speech with a few paragraphs in support of the Iran deal tossed in. I’m sure plenty of hawkish Republicans noticed too. And I’m sure it was written with that very much in mind.

Although, given the way Rubio is going these days, he may volunteer to deliver the nationalist rebuttal at the convention.

The video is long but you’ll find a transcript here. The indictment of Trump early on is especially bruising. Here’s the dilemma for a #NeverTrumper in this election: On the one hand, everything Guy Benson says about Clinton’s own myriad foreign-policy failures in the following passage is dead on . . .

[Hillary speaking about Donald Trump:]

He is not just unprepared – he is temperamentally unfit to hold an office that requires knowledge, stability and immense responsibility.

This is not someone who should ever have the nuclear codes – because it’s not hard to imagine Donald Trump leading us into a war just because somebody got under his very thin skin.

(Read more from “Hillary’s Foreign Policy Speech: Trump Is Dangerously Unfit for Office” HERE)

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These Parents Pulled Their Kids out of School for a Week Over Obama’s Bathroom Directive

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A Michigan family pulled their three sons out of public school for a week after finding out from their 9-year-old son that he had to share a restroom with a biological girl.

On May 13, the departments of Education and Justice issued a directive to schools around the nation, threatening to take away federal school funding if districts do not equate gender identity as a student’s biological sex.

The dad who pulled his kids out of school, Matt Stewart, told The Daily Signal that his 9-year-old son, who attends Southwest Elementary School in Howell, Michigan, informed him on Friday, May 20, that a girl was using the same restroom as him, at the same time.

“On Monday we had a conversation with our son’s teacher and the principal,” Stewart said. The next day, on May 24, Matt and his wife Lindsay removed their three boys, all who attend Southwest Elementary, from Howell Public Schools.

Stewart says that Erin MacGregor, the school district superintendent, suggested that his son could be accommodated with a single-use or unisex bathroom if the 9-year-old was uncomfortable with the current bathroom situation.

“As parents, we decided we were not going to force our children to make the decision between confusion, humiliation, and embarrassment,” Stewart told Kim Russell with WXYZ 7 Action News, Detroit’s ABC TV station.

A spokesperson for Howell Public Schools told The Daily Signal in an email that the school district could not comment regarding if a biological girl had been allowed to use the boys restroom at Southwest Elementary School, as the issue is a matter of student privacy. “Single-use bathrooms are available to any student who wishes to use one,” the spokesperson noted in reference to the accommodations available for Stewart’s son.

Stewart says that MacGregor confirmed with him on May 24 that there was no district-wide policy in place on this issue and that the superintendent had made the final decision allowing students to use the restroom of their choice, without prior notification to parents. The school district spokesperson confirmed to The Daily Signal that this information is correct.

On May 25, parents were informed through email of the school district’s intent to comply with President Barack Obama’s administration’s transgender student directive.

Meanwhile, Stewart was “hopeful that the superintendent and school board would be open to creating a policy where every student felt comfortable.”

“We are hopeful as parents that that would be a discussion that would involve members of the community in an open and transparent manner,” he said.

During the week Stewart’s kids were not in Howell Public Schools, the dad says the school district took “a 180” on the issue after those in the community spoke up.

The school district “changed their position” on May 31, Stewart told The Daily Signal.

“At Howell Public Schools we work tirelessly to create an inclusive environment where all students feel welcome, safe, and secure,” a statement given to The Daily Signal by a spokesperson for the school district says. The school district has decided to press pause on the Obama administration’s transgender student directive while it gathers feedback on the issue. The school district’s statement says:

At this time, we do not currently have any students using a restroom other than that designated for their biological gender, or requesting to do so. In light of this, we are pausing on the federal guidance issued to all school districts across the nation in a joint letter on transgender students issued by the Department of Justice and Department of Education on May 13, 2016, while we work to provide opportunities in the coming weeks to gather feedback on this matter. This feedback will further inform the board of education as they engage in a thoughtful approach to shape policies, practices, and guidelines consistent with legal requirements. Like districts across the state and country, Howell Public Schools and its board of education are staying apprised of the changing federal, state, and local dynamics relating to this matter.

“We have never sought to deprive any other student of their rights only to protect the rights of our own children,” Stewart said. He added:

This is an example of how we can make a difference in our communities. An injustice was brought to our attention and Lindsay and I spoke out, made others aware and shined a spotlight on what we felt was a hasty decision which was not well thought out. We appreciate the district’s responsiveness and are hopeful that they will be more cautious and thoughtful in the future on decisions which affect so many.

According to Stewart, MacGregor, the district’s superintendent, confirmed with him that Howell Public Schools will “only provide access to restrooms designated for a student’s birth gender or to a single-user facility” while the school district works to finalize policies and guidelines.

“We also trust that as they seek wisdom on the correct course that they will give parents the opportunity to have a voice,” Stewart said. “And when that happens we will speak up. For now, we will be sending our kids back to school with their assurances.” (For more from the author of “These Parents Pulled Their Kids out of School for a Week Over Obama’s Bathroom Directive” please click HERE)

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House Speaker Paul Ryan Makes the Trump Announcement Everyone’s Been Waiting For

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Saying he and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump “have more common ground than disagreement,” House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., announced Thursday that he will support Trump.

In the wake of Trump winning the required number of delegates to secure the Republican nomination, Ryan, who has differed with Trump on issues such as immigration, said last month he was “not ready” to endorse Trump.

The two later met. After what was proclaimed a good meeting, the Trump campaign had indicated a formal statement supporting Trump would be forthcoming.

Ryan issued his statement supporting Trump in the form of a guest column in The Gazette, the paper serving Ryan’s hometown of Janesville, Wis.

In the column, Ryan said the goal in the 2016 elections has been to show what Republicans are supporting, not just what they oppose. That’s why, he wrote, House Republicans have been adopting a policy agenda that represents ideas to move America forward.

“To enact these ideas, we need a Republican president willing to sign them into law. That’s why, when he sealed the nomination, I could not offer my support for Donald Trump before discussing policies and basic principles,” Ryan wrote. “As I said from the start, my goal has been to unite the party so we can win in the fall. And if we’re going to unite, it has to be over ideas.

“Donald Trump and I have talked at great length about things such as the proper role of the executive and fundamental principles such as the protection of life. The list of potential Supreme Court nominees he released after our first meeting was very encouraging.”

Ryan said “the House policy agenda” has been the main subject the two men have discussed.

“We’ve talked about how important these reforms are to saving our country. And we’ve talked about how, by focusing on issues that unite Republicans, we can work together to heal the fissures developed through the primary,” Ryan wrote.

“Through these conversations, I feel confident he would help us turn the ideas in this agenda into laws to help improve people’s lives. That’s why I’ll be voting for him this fall,” he wrote.

Ryan said support does not mean stifling dissent.

“It’s no secret that he and I have our differences. I won’t pretend otherwise. And when I feel the need to, I’ll continue to speak my mind. But the reality is, on the issues that make up our agenda, we have more common ground than disagreement,” he wrote.

Ryan said the coming election is “not just a choice of two people, but of two visions for America. And House Republicans are helping shape that Republican vision by offering a bold policy agenda, by offering a better way ahead.”

“Donald Trump can help us make it a reality,” Ryan wrote. (For more from the author of “House Speaker Paul Ryan Makes the Trump Announcement Everyone’s Been Waiting For” please click HERE)

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Bronx Man Beats Wife’s Would-Be Rapist to Death, Faces Manslaughter

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A Bronx man faces manslaughter charges after beating his wife’s would-be rapist to death.

According to reports, a 51 year old woman was hit over the head with a chair inside her Washington Avenue apartment at about 10:15pm Monday (May 30). The attacker, 43-year-old Earl Nash, illegally entered the building and forcibly removed her clothes. The woman fought him off and was able to dial her husband, 61-year-old Mamadou Diallo who was outside and rushed in.

Surveillance video shows Nash with no shirt on after the attack and Diallo getting off the elevator where his wife screamed “That’s him!” At this time, Diallo, a taxi driver, attacked Nash with a tire iron. Nash was taken to Lincoln Hospital in critical condition where he later died from his injuries. Hour before the attack Nash can be seen lurking in the hallways.

Diallo was taken into custody and charged with manslaughter, but he is expected to be released on his own recognizance. Diallo’s case will eventually go before a grand jury. (Read more from “Bronx Man Beats Wife’s Would-Be Rapist to Death, Faces Manslaughter” HERE)

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Newest Details Revealed in Clinton Aide Deposition Expose This About Hillary

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Video Transcript:

Hillary Clinton’s Chief of Staff, Cheryl Mills, finally had her deposition released and in it were some bombshells.

JUDGE NAPOLITANO: But what [Mills] did say is that Mrs. Clinton used exclusively her Blackberry. She didn’t have a laptop, she didn’t have a desktop, she didn’t have a tablet, she just used the Blackberry. Her Blackberry, not a government issued Blackberry. Because it was not government issue, it was blocked on the 7th floor of the State Department where her office is. What does that mean? That means that when she was in her office, she did not have the means to communicate electronically to her people all around the world for the entire time she was there. How did she do it? Take a security team, go from the 7th floor to the 6th floor where her Blackberry worked. Or she would have one of her aides come in and use a — you’ll like this cause you’re a historian — 19th Century technology, read the document to me. Read it aloud. So when people are saying she was incompetent as a Secretary of State, they’re absolutely correct and right on the mark because of this alone. She has ambassadors all around the world trying to communicate with her and she’s cut herself off.

Mills’ testimony revealed that one of Mrs. Clinton’s defenses was a lie.

NAPOLITANO: Mrs. Clinton in her press conferences, the few that she’s given, said “don’t worry about it because everything was stored and its searchable, all of my emails.” Cheryl Mills revealed in the deposition earlier this week, it was not searchable, that they couldn’t find this stuff because it had gone through Mrs. Clinton’s private server. What does this mean? All of this means that she frustrated the ordinary operations of the State Department, which she was in charge of because she was terrified of the president, the rest of the State Department, the media and the public knowing what she was doing. It is crystal clear that the motivation for all of this was her incredible desire to avoid the Freedom of Information Act, to keep from the president, the rest of the State Department and the public what she was doing as Secretary of State, which is a violation of the law.

(For more from the author of “Newest Details Revealed in Clinton Aide Deposition Expose This About Hillary” please click HERE)

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Evidence of Global Warming Found on a Planet With No Humans

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New evidence, as reported by the Washington Times, suggests that global warming is happening on a planet not inhabited by a single human… Mars.

The red planet, which moved closer to the Earth on Monday than at any other time since 2005, has retreated from a glacial period that would have covered large areas in white before the thaw about 370,000 years ago, according to a study published Friday in the journal Science.

The research was conducted using an instrument on board the NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter that allowed an unprecedented examination of “the most recent Martian ice age recorded in the planet’s north polar ice cap,” according to a NASA press release.

Scientists attribute the shift in Mars’ climate to natural variations that occur over “thousands of years.” Changes in the planet’s orbit and tilt of the planet’s axis move Mars in and out of ice ages over time.

“As the warm polar period ends, polar ice begins accumulating again, while ice is lost from mid-latitudes. This retreat and regrowth of polar ice is exactly what Smith and colleagues see in the record revealed by the [Shallow Subsurface Radar] images,” said NASA.

One wonders if Earth’s climate is undergoing a similar natural shift. (For more from the author of “Evidence of Global Warming Found on a Planet With No Humans” please click HERE)

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Medical Examiner Reveals the Cause of Prince’s Death

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Prince died of an accidental overdose of the powerful painkiller fentanyl, autopsy results released Thursday show . . .

According to a one-page report released by the Midwest Medical Examiner’s Office, Prince administered the drug himself, but the date he took it was unknown. The office said it has completed its death investigation and had no further comment.

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid, 50 times more potent than heroin, that’s partly responsible for a recent surge in overdose deaths in some parts of the country. It also has legitimate medical uses. More than 700 fentanyl-related overdose deaths were reported to the Drug Enforcement Administration in late 2013 and 2014. (Read more from “Medical Examiner Reveals the Cause of Prince’s Death” HERE)

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Police Investigate Aircraft Tire Slashings in Alaska

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Authorities are investigating an overnight vandalism spree that left dozens of airplanes with slashed tires at a small airport in the Alaska’s largest city.

The flattened tires were discovered Thursday morning on 87 small planes at Merrill Field, on the edge of downtown Anchorage. Police spokeswoman Jennifer Castro said police are investigating the vandalism, but she had few details.

Footage from security cameras was being reviewed as part of the investigation, airfield manager Paul Bowers said. Merrill Field, home to about 830 aircraft, has more security cameras than any other general aviation airport in the state, he said. (Read more from “Police Investigate Aircraft Tire Slashings in Alaska” HERE)

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Limbaugh Explains Why Many Believe a Gorilla’s Life More Valuable Than a Boy’s

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Rush Limbaugh believes he has put his finger on why many people would struggle to see that a young boy’s life is more valuable than a gorilla’s.

The conservative radio talk show host dedicated a large segment of his Tuesday program to discussing the controversy created at the Cincinnati Zoo after the staff made the decision to shoot the 400-pound gorilla, named Harambe, in order to save the boy, who had fallen into its habitat area.

Video of the incident shows Harambe both appearing to care for the boy and treating him very roughly, dragging him around the enclosure.

Limbaugh points out that the gorilla did nothing wrong: It was not his fault the young child managed to fall into the animal’s space. The boy cannot be held at fault either, so neither was to blame.

The commentator explained an unmistakable fact seen in the video is that no zookeeper was going to be able to take the boy away from the gorilla, and the longer the child stayed in the animal’s area, the more likely he would be seriously hurt or killed.

The zoo’s staff feared firing a tranquilizer dart into Harambe would likely anger the animal and take a period of time to take effect, putting the boy in even more jeopardy.

The choice, however disconcerting, was clear: put the gorilla down. Limbaugh observed that this decision should not be difficult for people to grasp, but based on the strong response online to killing the animal, it was.

The talk show host offered a reason why some people found such a moral dilemma in the choice, acknowledging it may make some “uncomfortable to hear it.”

“But in this case there are people who think that gorilla’s life mattered more. In a country with whatever million number of abortions every year, I mean, you can’t factor that out in understanding how people would have problems placing value on which life counts most here,” he said.

Limbaugh also pointed out that for many on the left, “humans are the cause of everything going wrong on earth,” from climate change to animal suffering.

“By definition, these people cannot be familiar with Genesis, and if they were, they would dissociate themselves from it,” stated Limbaugh. “They have absolutely no such training, foundation, or awareness of the primacy of humanity on planet Earth as created by God. Such a mindset does not exist with them. It’s the exact opposite. Humanity is the problem.” (For more from the author of “Limbaugh Explains Why Many Believe a Gorilla’s Life More Valuable Than a Boy’s” please click HERE)

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