On January 20th of this year, a never-before-seen light shined down on the United States of America and an indescribable magic ensued, where the impoverished became enriched, the enslaved became free, the Debbie Downers became perky high school cheerleaders named Marcia. No, that's not what happened six and a half months ago when Donald Trump was inaugurated as our 45th president, but that's what his most ardent supporters, including himself, would have you believe.
When asked to name Donald Trump's biggest legislative accomplishment, the president and his staunch followers tend to go the route of, "Well, just look at the great jobs numbers, the low unemployment rate, the record-breaking stock market! That has to count for something!"
Oddly enough, these same individuals criticized then President Obama for reporting fake jobs numbers and unemployment rates, with Donald Trump being the most vocal critic at times.
I'm sorry, but Donald Trump has done nothing to alter the course of jobs and unemployment in this country, and done little to alter the course of the stock market. Change doesn't happen overnight, and even if the current president had set forth legislative success with regard to job creation, we wouldn't see the impacts of it at this point in his tenure.
Let's step back a moment and try to see reality for what it is. At the peak of the recession, unemployment was at 10.0% and the Dow Jones was at 6,594.44. This is what the 44th president, Barack Obama, inherited from his predecessor, George W. Bush. When Obama left the Oval Office, the unemployment rate was at 4.7%, which is a 53% decrease from where it was at the peak of the Great Recession. Not only that, but the Dow Jones increased 199.2% since that point in the recession to 19,732.40. Lastly, in Obama's final 6 years as president, 14.486 million jobs were created, which equates to 201,194.4 per month.
After 6 months in Washington, Donald Trump has seen the unemployment rate dip 8.5% to 4.3%. The Dow Jones has increased 11.8% to 22,058.39. In addition to that, 1.074 million jobs have been created, which brings the monthly average to 179,000.
Let's look at those numbers again:
Unemployment rate
Obama: -53%
Trump: -8.5%
Difference: Obama -44.5%/Trump +44.5%
Dow Jones
Obama: +199.2%
Trump: +11.8%
Difference: Obama +187.4%/Trump -187.4%
Job creation (part 1)
Obama: 14,486,000 (201,194.4 per month)
Trump: 1,074,000 (179,000 per month)
Difference: Obama +22,194.4 per month/Trump -22,194.4 per month
Job creation (part 2)
Obama's final 6 months: 1,159,000
Trump's first 6 months: 1,074,000
Difference: Obama +85,000/Trump -85,000
Where Trump would equal Obama
Unemployment rate: 2.2%
Dow Jones: 39,306.94
Is the unemployment rate at a lowly 4.3%? Yes. Is the Dow Jones at a record high? Yes. Are jobs being created every month? Yes again. However, did Donald Trump have much to do with any of these numbers? No. He wasn't handed a recession like the previous president. He hasn't seen large decreases in unemployment like his predecessor, witnessed large increases in the Dow Jones like under Obama, and has simply been riding the 44th president's coattails, taking credit for that which he doesn't deserve. If this were an NFL team and coach Barack Obama guided the club to a 15-0 record, had to leave for medical reasons, and Donald Trump came in to lead the team to their sixteenth victory in as many games, the chances are good he'd take credit for all 16 victories, even if he had been sleeping through the first 15. If Donald Trump ever says "Thanks, Obama," instead of uttering the phrase sarcastically, he should actually mean it.
http://www.npr.org/2017/01/19/510491692/the-america-donald-trump-is-inheriting-by-the-numbers
https://www.thebalance.com/stock-market-crash-of-2008-3305535
http://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/101314/where-was-dow-jones-when-obama-took-office.asp
https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/CES0000000001?output_view=net_1mth
http://time.com/money/4636761/jobs-barack-obama-presidency/
https://www.mprnews.org/story/2017/08/04/us-gains-209k-jobs-unemployment-falls-4-3-perent
http://money.cnn.com/data/markets/
When asked to name Donald Trump's biggest legislative accomplishment, the president and his staunch followers tend to go the route of, "Well, just look at the great jobs numbers, the low unemployment rate, the record-breaking stock market! That has to count for something!"
Oddly enough, these same individuals criticized then President Obama for reporting fake jobs numbers and unemployment rates, with Donald Trump being the most vocal critic at times.
I'm sorry, but Donald Trump has done nothing to alter the course of jobs and unemployment in this country, and done little to alter the course of the stock market. Change doesn't happen overnight, and even if the current president had set forth legislative success with regard to job creation, we wouldn't see the impacts of it at this point in his tenure.
Let's step back a moment and try to see reality for what it is. At the peak of the recession, unemployment was at 10.0% and the Dow Jones was at 6,594.44. This is what the 44th president, Barack Obama, inherited from his predecessor, George W. Bush. When Obama left the Oval Office, the unemployment rate was at 4.7%, which is a 53% decrease from where it was at the peak of the Great Recession. Not only that, but the Dow Jones increased 199.2% since that point in the recession to 19,732.40. Lastly, in Obama's final 6 years as president, 14.486 million jobs were created, which equates to 201,194.4 per month.
After 6 months in Washington, Donald Trump has seen the unemployment rate dip 8.5% to 4.3%. The Dow Jones has increased 11.8% to 22,058.39. In addition to that, 1.074 million jobs have been created, which brings the monthly average to 179,000.
Let's look at those numbers again:
Unemployment rate
Obama: -53%
Trump: -8.5%
Difference: Obama -44.5%/Trump +44.5%
Dow Jones
Obama: +199.2%
Trump: +11.8%
Difference: Obama +187.4%/Trump -187.4%
Job creation (part 1)
Obama: 14,486,000 (201,194.4 per month)
Trump: 1,074,000 (179,000 per month)
Difference: Obama +22,194.4 per month/Trump -22,194.4 per month
Job creation (part 2)
Obama's final 6 months: 1,159,000
Trump's first 6 months: 1,074,000
Difference: Obama +85,000/Trump -85,000
Where Trump would equal Obama
Unemployment rate: 2.2%
Dow Jones: 39,306.94
Is the unemployment rate at a lowly 4.3%? Yes. Is the Dow Jones at a record high? Yes. Are jobs being created every month? Yes again. However, did Donald Trump have much to do with any of these numbers? No. He wasn't handed a recession like the previous president. He hasn't seen large decreases in unemployment like his predecessor, witnessed large increases in the Dow Jones like under Obama, and has simply been riding the 44th president's coattails, taking credit for that which he doesn't deserve. If this were an NFL team and coach Barack Obama guided the club to a 15-0 record, had to leave for medical reasons, and Donald Trump came in to lead the team to their sixteenth victory in as many games, the chances are good he'd take credit for all 16 victories, even if he had been sleeping through the first 15. If Donald Trump ever says "Thanks, Obama," instead of uttering the phrase sarcastically, he should actually mean it.
http://www.npr.org/2017/01/19/510491692/the-america-donald-trump-is-inheriting-by-the-numbers
https://www.thebalance.com/stock-market-crash-of-2008-3305535
http://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/101314/where-was-dow-jones-when-obama-took-office.asp
https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/CES0000000001?output_view=net_1mth
http://time.com/money/4636761/jobs-barack-obama-presidency/
https://www.mprnews.org/story/2017/08/04/us-gains-209k-jobs-unemployment-falls-4-3-perent
http://money.cnn.com/data/markets/
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