by Jed Lewison
Sat Oct 30, 2010 at 08:16:03 AM PDT
[Such a good reminder, we’re going to run it once every day until the election. Susan]
Questions:
- What was the average monthly private sector job growth in 2008, the final year of the Bush presidency, and what has it been so far in 2010?
- What was the Federal deficit for the last fiscal year of the Bush presidency, and what was it for the first full fiscal year of the Obama presidency?
- What was the stock market at on the last day of the Bush presidency? What is it at today?
- Which party’s candidate for speaker will campaign this weekend with a Nazi reenactor who dressed up in a SS uniform?
Answers:
- In 2008, we lost an average of 317,250 private sector jobs per month. In 2010, we have gained an average of 95,888 private sector jobs per month. (Source) That’s a difference of nearly five million jobs between Bush’s last year in office and President Obama’s second year.
- In FY2009, which began on September 1, 2008 and represents the Bush Administration’s final budget, the budget deficit was $1.416 trillion. In FY2010, the first budget of the Obama Administration, the budget deficit was $1.291 trillion, a decline of $125 billion. (Source) Yes, that means President Obama has cut the deficit — there’s a long way to go, but we’re in better shape now than we were under Bush and the GOP.
- On Bush’s final day in office, the Dow, NASDAQ, and S&P 500 closed at 7,949, 1,440, and 805, respectively. Today, as of 10:15AM Pacific, they are at 11,108, 2,512, and 1,183. That means since President Obama took office, the Dow, NASDAQ, and S&P 500 have increased 40%, 74%, and 47%, respectively.
- The Republican Party, whose candidate for speaker, John Boehner, will campaign with Nazi re-enactor Rich Iott this weekend. If you need an explanation why this is offensive, you are a lost cause.
The moral of the story is this: if you vote Republican, I hope you enjoy Election Day — because you’re not going to like what comes next.
