An In-depth Look at how Obama has Slowed U.S. Economic Recovery

You may here data saying that the United States is making a rebound economically, with reports citing unemployment not rising and the American GDP increasing.  Hearing these sound-bites, devoid of context, some might think that the United States is recovering brilliantly under President Obama.  But I hate to be the one to break it to them, but there are reasons the U.S. economy is recovering, and it's no thanks to President Obama.

Before I go into the data I will state second things from the outset:  first, the information I am using are facts from the International Monetary Fund and the Bureau of Labor Statistics (aggregated through this website).  Second, the United States' economy is resilient, and despite President Obama badly damaging it, it will recover.

Unemployment


Easily the most obvious failure of the Obama Administration is employment.  Way back in his first month in office, the President promised that, if his stimulus bill was passed, that unemployment would not rise about 8%.  As everyone from Main Street to Wall Street knows, he broke his promise.

But even more damning is the unemployment compared to the four Presidents before him. *Author's note, it was difficult to get raw data pre-1980, so that is why the graphs will begin with President Reagan.  Take a look at it:

I bet you can guess who's President on the far right.  Feel free to look at the data here.  The graph is a compilation of yearly unemployment averages.  In fact, the average unemployment under Obama is greater than the highest single year of the last 30 years.


What people need to realize is that when the MSM states that unemployment is down X percent, that it is all relative.  The thing is, unemployment never even should have been that high in the first place.  You will see this trend as the article continues.

GDP


Few economists talk about the GDP of the United States, normally.  They talk it in respect to the President only when it is "rising."  But once again, this is a relative matter.  For example, if the national GDP is $10 trillion and it climbs to $12 trillion, it increases by $2 trillion, but only 20%.  Yet if the U.S. GDP is $1 trillion and it goes to $2 trillion, it increases by only $1 trillion, but is a 100% gain.  This is what is happening under Obama.

Think of headlines by the MSM.  When they talk about American growth, do you ever heard hard numbers?  No, always percents.  Because under Obama the GDP of the U.S. has stagnated, even a small increase seems larger than before.

With the context included, the falling GDP of the U.S. under Obama is even more stark:

Point three percent.  Just wow.  And just to be nice, I added the estimated increase of the U.S. GDP in 2010.  If I had not, the graph would have shown a decrease under Obama at -2.4%, which, by the way, is the lowest of any year in the last thirty (again).

Borrowing


This will be my last graph, and the only one that's a bar-graph.  Unfortunately, the data bank that I am using only goes back to 2001, but the stats are evident.  This graph will simply show the average amount of money owed/borrowed during any year of the Bush and Obama Administrations, respectively.

I think the graph speaks for itself:

Unbelievable.  And once again, Obama has the most money borrowed in the data's recorded history.

In Conclusion


When you turn on your T.V. or read the newspaper and see the economy rebounding, the see the incredible American economy rebuilding.  What you do not see are results because of the President's actions, but in spite of them.  Our capitalist society and the great people that inhabit it are the driving force behind the strength of our nation and economy, and they do not sit idly by as it falls.

In the end, this shows that without the President's mishandling of the economy, our nation would be doing better.  All President Obama has done is slow our recovery down.


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