Kerry Campaign Chair Awards Bush the “Herbert Hoover Award”
March 09, 2004
For Immediate Release
Washington, DC
Today as President Bush handed out awards at the Malcolm Baldridge National Quality awards ceremony, Kerry Campaign Chairwoman Jeanne Shaheen awarded George Bush the “Herbert Hoover Award” for presiding over the worst record on jobs of any president in American history.
“Since the president is handing out awards today, we wanted to give him one,” said Governor Shaheen. “So, on behalf of the nearly 3 million people who have lost their jobs under this administration, we are awarding George Bush the first ever ‘Herbert Hoover Award’ for having the worst jobs record since the Great Depression. It’s a special award reserved for presidents that have somehow managed to lose jobs on their watch. The American people need to know that their president has failed to lead on jobs, and that John Kerry is running for president to change the direction of this economy and get people back to work.”
To view the Herbert Hoover Award, click here:
johnkerry.com
GEORGE W. BUSH: WINNER OF THE “HERBERT HOOVER AWARD” – A RECORD OF FAILURE ON JOBS
BUSH: Worst Job Creation Record Since Hoover. “The economy has lost 2.2 million payroll jobs since January 2001, giving Bush the worst job creation record of any president since Herbert Hoover. The U.S. economy, to match the White House's jobs forecast, would have to churn out well over 220,000 new jobs each month for the rest of the year, economists say.” [Associated Press, 2/11/04]
The Numbers Tell the Story of Failure
ALMOST THREE MILLION: Since George W. Bush took office, America has lost almost 3 million private sector jobs.
EVERY MONTH: Manufacturing jobs have been lost every single month of the Bush Presidency.
ONE MILLION: One million jobs have been outsourced since President Bush took office.
33 PERCENT HIGHER: Unemployment has increased 33 percent since Bush took office.
$10,368. American families will pay 10,368 in interest on the debt by 2014.
George Bush’s Solution: More of the Same, More Broken Promises
Even though George Bush’s economic plan of tax cuts for the wealthy have only led to more job losses, he is offering more of the same: one trillion more in tax cuts targeted to the wealthy and new promises that he cannot meet.
First Tax Cut:
Bush Promise: Will create 800,000 jobs by the end of 2002.
Reality: American lost 1.9 million jobs.
Second Tax Cut:
Bush Promise: Will create 1 million new jobs.
Reality: America lost 53,000 jobs.
New Promise:
Bush Promise: 2.6 million jobs in 2004.
Reality: FED Chairman Alan Greenspan says it’s unlikely.
Nationally, 2.9 Million Jobs Lost; Unemployment Rate Up 33 Percent. The national unemployment rate in January 2004 was 5.6 percent, up from 4.2 percent when Bush took office in January 2001 - a 33 percent increase. Nationally, the economy has lost 2.9 million private sector jobs under Bush. [Bureau of Labor Statistics, bls.gov]
Bush Promised, Then Backed Away From 2.6 New Million Jobs This Year. “Thursday's report also showed that the number of unemployed people collecting jobless benefits for more than a week rose by 106,000 to 3.2 million for the week ending Feb. 7, the most recent period for which that information is available. This suggests that jobs are still hard to find for some workers. The report comes as recent Bush administration comments about the job climate touched a political nerve and raise questions about the White House's economic grasp. President Bush on Wednesday distanced himself from an earlier prediction by his economic advisors that that the economy would add 2.6 million new jobs this year.” [Associated Press, 2/19/04]
One Tenth Needed Jobs Created in February. “About 21,000 jobs were created in February, the Labor Department said yesterday, a sixth the size of economists' forecasts. The unemployment rate remained at 5.6 percent as 392,000 people dropped out of the labor force, just as the presidential campaign kicked into high gear. The Labor Department, which originally estimated an increase of 112,000 jobs in January, also revised that number downward, to 97,000.” [Baltimore Sun, 3/6/04]
Nationally, Nearly 2.8 Million Manufacturing Jobs Lost Under Bush. The manufacturing industry has lost 2,787,000 jobs nationwide since Bush took office in January 2001. Employment for this key sector of the American economy is at its lowest level since October 1958. Of the 2.9 million private sector jobs lost under Bush, manufacturing losses account for 95 percent. [Bureau of Labor Statistics, bls.gov]
Nationally, Workers’ Wages and Salaries Are Stagnant. In the third quarter of 2003, America's gross domestic product surged at a rate of 8.2 percent and corporate profits grew at an annual rate above 40 percent. But during this same period, wages and salaries grew by less than 1 percent. Furthermore, in the six months that ended in November 2003, income from wages rose just 0.65 percent after inflation. [Department of Commerce, 12/23/03; New York Times, 12/31/03; Charleston Gazette (West Virginia), 1/2/04]
Bush Presided Over “Biggest Gusher of Red Ink In History.” ”President George W. Bush has now presided over the biggest gusher of red ink in the nation's history, from a surplus of $127 billion when he entered office for fiscal 2001 to a 2004 deficit projection of $521 billion. …” [Business Week Online, 2/3/04]
Think Tanks Predicts Debt of $5.3 Trillion in Ten Years. “In a study of budget trends, the Brookings Institution said the national debt will increase by $5.3 trillion over the next decade, so that by 2014 the increase in government borrowing will cost the average household in America an extra $3,000 just to pay interest on the debt. … If the tax cuts are made permanent as Bush wants, the Congressional Budget Office says that could increase the deficit by another $1.4 trillion over the next decade.” [Chicago Tribune, 2/8/04]
Nationally, 3.5 Million More Americans Have Fallen Into Poverty Under Bush. In 2002, the number of Americans living in poverty increased to 34.6 million. Three-and-a-half million more Americans live in poverty under Bush. For 2002, a family with two parents and two children lives in poverty if their total household income is below $18,244. [Census Bureau, Poverty in the United States: 2002, Table 4, census.gov]
Bush Proposed to Eliminate Overtime for 8 Million Workers. Bush proposed regulations that would end eligibility for overtime pay—a critical source of income—for 8 million workers by reclassifying them as managers, administrative workers or professional employees. In addition, Bush's Department of Labor issued advice to companies in its explanation of the proposal on strategies to avoid paying overtime. Among these were cutting workers' base pay to subtract extra overtime pay costs and cutting workers' hours to strictly enforce a 40 hour work week. The non-partisan Economic Policy Institute called the proposal “pure special-interest politics with complete disregard for the democratic process.” [Akron Beacon -Journal, 12/5/03; EPI, 7/03, www.epi.org; New York Times, 7/1/03; AP, 1/6/04]
Republicans Say Larger Spending Increases Than Democrats. “[Reporter David GREGORY]: But the deficit and the Bush record of annual spending increases--larger than any since Lyndon Johnson was in the White House--has created a potent election-year issue for Democrats. … The real political trouble for the president is that it's not just Democrats piling on, but even conservatives. Rush Limbaugh delivered this stinging blow to his radio audience Thursday.
Mr. RUSH LIMBAUGH: Bush has outspent Clinton.
GREGORY: Spending--like Mr. Bush's plan to send a man to Mars, and his projected 17 percent budget increase for the national endowment for the arts--has the president's political base agitated. Both are seen as outreach efforts to swing voters, but allies warn it could backfire on Election Day.” [NBC Nightly News, 1/30/04]
Small Businesses Shutting Down. In fact, for the first time since 1990, more businesses with more than one and fewer than 500 employees shut down in 2001 and 2002 than were created, according to the Small Business Administration's most recent data.
Bush Eliminates Key Part of Small Business Loan Program—First Time in 50 Years. “The Bush administration's recently released federal budget is a travesty for small business. In the whopping $2.4 trillion budget, the Small Business Administration gets a measly $678.4 million — a decrease of $119.5 million, or 15%, from last year’s already low level.
Here are some ways President Bush's budget slashes small-business assistance:
Entirely eliminates the Microloan Program.
Reduces government guarantees from 75% to 50% and increases fees on the SBA 7(a) loan program.
Reduces funding for Small Business Development Centers.
Slashes the Manufacturing Extension Partnership from $106 million to a paltry $39 million.
‘This would be the first time in the 50-year history of SBA that zero appropriations would be provided the 7(a) program,’ said Anthony R. Wilkinson, president of the National Association of Government Guaranteed Lenders — a group of private-industry bankers. It will be much more difficult — and costly — for entrepreneurs to qualify for SBA loans. Keep in mind these programs are highly successful and cost efficient. In fact, there's solid evidence that SBA loans and SBDC assistance result in increased tax revenues. …During the last decade, small business has become an even more important part of the American economy. Indeed, if it weren't for the jobs created by small business, the American employment picture would be far more dismal than it is. Virtually every study of new job creation shows that it's small and new companies — not big or existing businesses — creating jobs. A 2003 Census study found most job growth came from companies less than 2 years old.” [Rhonda Abrams Money column, USA Today, 2/14/03 (author of The Successful Business Plan: Secrets & Strategies)] |
