The editors of the Chicago Tribune lay out their case that the time for the president and Congress to act is now:
This is, by many measures, the feeblest economic recovery since the Great Depression. Most economists expect the malaise to continue into 2013. Remember, we’re talking about a disturbingly poky recovery from a recession that ended in … June 2009. Yes, 38 months ago.
To some extent, the sluggish results reflect the lingering effects of that downturn. Consumers got hammered through layoffs and a housing bust. The financial system froze, and businesses stopped investing, even after their profits recovered. Government ordered banks to recapitalize and poured on monetary and fiscal stimulus. That was a predictable response, and we generally supported it.
What’s maddening is the self-inflicted damage caused by subsequent inaction in Washington once the crisis subsided. Gridlock on Capitol Hill has created unnecessary uncertainty for employers, for households, for everyone: It has increased risks for businesses that don’t know what the tax and investment rules will be. It has discouraged spending by consumers who worry that the continued high unemployment rate could, in any given week, bite them, too. And while it is difficult to measure these impacts with precision, the cumulative consequences for confidence among job creators, investors and consumers have been huge. Week after week, fresh economic numbers attest to the torpor.
Why blame Congress and the White House with contributing to this maddeningly slo-mo recovery?
Because lawmakers aren’t doing their jobs — postponing rigorous decisions at every turn — all of these measures are weaker than they should be. The business climate is worse. Consumers remain more fearful. The economy is growing less. With Washington in pre-election hibernation, Americans are marooned in a perpetual state of wait-and-see.
If the American people weren’t so torpid, incumbents of both parties would be egged every time they made an appearance until they get back to work. Why re-elect them? So they can keep not doing what they’re not doing now?
Why re-elect them? So they can keep not doing what they’re not doing now?
Come on, man! Don’t you know that if you vote (insert random commenter’s favorite letter here) on a party-line vote, it will be all lolly-pop farting unicorns from here on! The (D)s will do for America what they’ve done for the Chevy, and the (R)s will do for America what they’ve done for Afghanistan and Iraq! The key is party-line voting.
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What, this doesn’t reassure?
The uncertainty thing still bothers me. It strikes me that true certainty is what we had in the 2000s and the 1990s. Bubbles that were not sustainable. I also note that in this era of uncertainty, good products are still selling. IPads and Iphones have been going gangbusters all of this time. If real estate was providing its usual number of jobs, and government was not dumping employees, we would have a fairly normal UE rate.
Steve