Expanded Access To High
Since the Presidents call to action, 38 states have boosted their investments in preschool. Between 2013 and 2016, increased investments totaled over $1.5 billion and 30 states increased their preschool enrollment from 2009-2014. Read more.
Raised the bar on quality through enactment of bipartisan child care legislation that raised health, safety, and quality standards for federally-subsidized child care. Made significant reforms to Head Start and secured funding to increase number of programs in all 50 states.
Comparing Economic Numbers: Obama’s Administration And The Coronavirus
Before the coronavirus, the U.S. economy was doing well with an overall unemployment rate of 3.5%, the lowest in half a century. Now, there are 26 million unemployed Americans, with 4.4 million filing for unemployment insurance claims last week. The next unemployment update will come May 1.
When Barack Obama became president, he inherited the economy of the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. In George W. Bush’s final year as president, 4 million jobs were lost and Obama’s first year saw the loss of another 4 million.
The unemployment rate was at 7.8% when Obama took office it peaked at 10% in October 2009. By the time Obama left office, the unemployment rate was down to 4.8%, which is below the historical norm of 5.6%.
Due to the coronarvirus, a Federal Reserve estimate projects that the U.S. could ultimately see a 32% unemployment rate in the second quarter of this year.
On top a severe increase in unemployment, the pandemic also has caused the stock market to drop.
On Feb. 12, the Dow hit an all-time high of 29,551. The market fell from there, and on March 9 the Dow had its worst single-day drop in history, at that time, decreasing by more than 2,000 points.
When Obama became president, he inherited a Dow of 7,949 points. At the end of his presidency, the Dow was at 19,372, a more than 140% increase.
How Much Credit Does A President Deserve For Unemployment
Americans tend to praise presidents for job creation or blame them for economic collapse, but that’s not entirely fair.
For example, the early 2000s US economy was floating on the tech bubble, which happened to pop while Bush was in office. And near the end of Bush’s second term, deep structural problems in the economy and global fears fueled the recession.
But it’s also wrong to say that presidents have nothing to do with job creation or the broader economy. Bush made the decision to enact major tax cuts, launch two wars overseas, and spend about $1 trillion on homeland security and each one of those moves significantly increased the US deficit and contributed to a weaker economy.
Meanwhile, Obama’s January 2009 stimulus package and the March 2010 Affordable Care Act clearly affected the economy, too, and seemingly in more positive ways. For instance, the stimulus created about 2.5 million jobs, according to Michael Grunwald, who wrote a history of the stimulus called The New New Deal.
“Job losses peaked the month before passed,” Grunwald wrote in August 2012. “The jobs numbers that spring, while grim, marked the biggest quarterly improvement in almost 30 years. The Recovery Act launched a weak recovery, but even a weak recovery beats a depression.”
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Is The Unemployment Rate A Fiction
The Bureau of Labor Statistics measurement of unemployment is accurate but it is slightly more complicated than just measuring Americans who are not currently working. The BLS defines unemployed workers thusly:
People are classified as unemployed if they do not have a job, have actively looked for work in the prior 4 weeks, and are currently available for work. Actively looking for work may consist of any of the following activities:
- Contacting:
- A school or university employment center
The only way Trumps numbers could be considered more accurate than the Bureau of Labor Statistics is if we look at all Americans who arent working. The problem with that is that not working isnt the same as looking for work and not finding it. Trumps tally would have to include, for example, stay-at-home parents and retired persons among others who are not looking for work.
The labor force participation rate has dropped during Obamas presidency, from 66 percent to 62.7 percent. This change is concerning, but it doesnt mean that unemployment data is inaccurate or even misleading certainly not to the tune of a 42 percent unemployment rate.
Took Action To Curb Harmful Loopholes For The Wealthy
Treasury proposed regulations to end a specific abuse of the carried interest loophole the use of management fee waivers to convert fees into low-taxed carried interest.
Treasury proposed regulations to close a loophole that allows wealthy families to use certain estate planning strategies to claim large discounts on the value of their assets to reduce their estate and gift taxes.
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Signed The Bipartisan Workforce Innovation And Opportunity Act The First Reform Of Federal Job Training Programs In Nearly 20 Years Wioa Improves Business Engagement Accountability Access And Alignment Across Job Training Employment Service And Adult Education Programs
WIOA is bringing job training programs into the 21st century by building on what we know works based on evidence more partnerships with employers, tools to measure performance, and flexibilities for states and cities to innovate and run their training programs in ways best suited for their particular demographics and particular industries.
How Is That Possible
Thus, the question arises: How do unemployment rates and Labor force participation both decrease?
Either employment failed to match the potential labor force’s growth because there have been insufficient jobs or Americans deem the available jobs not worth entering the workforce for, said J.T. Young, a former Treasury Department official.
As with everything in politics, not every figure is exactly how it appears, but Obama at least does have the numbers on his side.
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Unemployment Reached A Half
The unemployment rate measures the share of the labor force that is jobless and seeking work. It fluctuates based on economic conditions and rises during downturns, as it did during the Great Recession over a decade ago.
The rate reached a high of 10% in October 2009, and it steadily fell during Obamas presidency. When Trump took office in January 2017, it stood at 4.7%.
The unemployment rate dropped to a half-century low of 3.5% in February 2020. Once the pandemic slammed the economy, businesses shuttered and people stayed home to curb the spread of the virus. It caused unemployment to soar to nearly 15% in April a joblessness level unseen since the Great Depression.
It declined as businesses reopened and the economy regained a portion of the lost jobs. Now the unemployment rate stands at 7.9%.
Unemployment: High On Average But A Better Handoff
One way to filter out those effects is by looking at the unemployment rate, which captures only the share of people who are looking for a job who cant find one.
The average jobless rate during the Obama presidency is quite high by modern standards, at 7.4 percent. Even amid the miserable job growth record of the George W. Bush administration, the jobless rate averaged only 5.2 percent.
The sheer depth of the recession that Mr. Obama inherited, combined with the slow, long slog out of it over which he presided, ensured that the jobless rate was, on average, elevated through his presidency.
If you look not at the average, but compare the economy a president inherited with the one he passed along to his successor, President Obamas record looks a great deal better. If the December jobless number is unchanged in January, Donald J. Trump will inherit among the lowest jobless rates of any new president in modern times. Only Richard Nixon and George W. Bush inherited a lower rate.
And the 3.1-percentage-point decline in joblessness over President Obamas eight years ties with Mr. Clinton for the steepest drop during a presidency in the post-World War II era.
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Announced A New Testing Action Plan To Make Sure That Any Tests Used In Our Nations Classrooms Are High Quality And Worth Taking Dont Take Up Too Much Classroom Time Or Crowd Out Teaching And Learning And Are Used Alongside Other Types Of Information To Paint A Fuller Picture Of How Our Students And Schools Are Doing
“Learning is about so much more than just filling in the right bubble. So were going to work with states, school districts, teachers, and parents to make sure that were not obsessing about testing, that the principles I just outlined are reflected in classrooms throughout the countryto make sure that our kids are enjoying learning, that our teachers are able to operate with creativity, to make sure we are preparing our kids for a lifetime of success.” President Obama
Expanded Reporting Requirements For Hedge Funds And Private Equity Funds
Greater Transparency: Wall Street Reform re-aligned incentives in derivatives and securitization markets, hedge fund reporting requirements, and executive compensation:
- Derivatives Reform: Wall Street Reform is bringing oversight and transparency to the over-the-counter derivatives markets shedding light on complex derivatives transactions.
- Securitization Reform: Dodd-Frank has strengthened the securitization process, to better protect investors and minimize the threats to financial stability.
- Hedge Fund Registration: Hedge funds and other private funds are now subject to registration, recordkeeping, and disclosure obligations.
- Executive Compensation: Wall Street Reform helps align business decisions and compensation with the interests of shareholders increasing disclosure of executive compensation for publicly traded firms, giving shareholders an advisory say on pay for senior executives, and requiring that the board compensation committees be independent.
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Economic Recovery Under Obama
At CNN, we start with the facts. Visit CNN’s home for Facts First.Facts First:If you look solely at the average rate of GDP growth, it’s true that that the economy recovered more slowly after the Great Recession than during previous rebounds. But growth hasn’t been exceptionally better under Trump.GDP growthexperienced since World War II
Made Permanent Important Expansions To Tax Credits For Working And Middle
The Budget Agreement Permanently Expands Important Tax Credits for Working Families
- Expansions of the Earned Income Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit provide an average tax cut of about $900 for roughly 16 million working families a year. This can have a major impact: If a single mother of two works full-time all year for the federal minimum wage earning $14,500 a year she receives an additional Child Tax Credit of $1,725 each year as a result of the expansion. She would not receive any CTC if the provision expired.
- The American Opportunity Tax Credit provides a maximum credit of $2,500 per year for the first four years of college up to $10,000 per student to help students and their families afford college.
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Summary Of Major Budgetary Legislation
President Obama signed four key laws that significantly impacted the level of revenue and spending:
Lobbying And Campaign Finance Reform
Obama has spoken out numerous times against the influence of lobbying in the United States. He also co-sponsored legislation that limits lobbyists’ influence by mandating that lawmakers pay full charter fare when flying on lobbyists’ corporate jets.
On January 24, 2007, in reference to his stated plan to take public financing should he procure the nomination, he said, “I think that for a time, the presidential public financing system works.” On November 27, he said, “I will aggressively pursue an agreement with the Republican nominee to preserve a publicly financed general election,” and on February 28, 2008, he wrote that he planned to “aggressively pursue” a publicly financed campaign, later promising to sit down with John McCain to ensure “a public system” of campaign financing is preserved. On June 19, 2008, he opted out of public campaign financing and declared, “I support a robust system of public financing of elections but the public financing of presidential elections as it exists today is broken.” Furthermore, he maintained that he would not take contributions from federal lobbyists and special interests during his 2008 presidential campaign.
According to his website, Obama would create an online database of lobbying reports, campaign finance filings and ethics records, and would create an independent watchdog agency to oversee congressional ethical violations.
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Who’s Responsible For Bringing Unemployment Down: Obama Or Trump
Throughout his tenure in the Oval Office, President Donald Trump has claimed credit for the health of the economy and the historically low unemployment rates. Trump and his administration maintain that his policy of relaxing restrictions on corporations has created an environment in which the economy can thrive. Some, however, contend the economic upturn began under President Barack Obama. Economists and members of the Obama White House say the previous president set Trump up for success. What do you think?
In October 2018, both President Donald Trump and Barack Obama claimed responsibility for the booming economy. However, numbers seem to back Obama’s claimâhis policies turned a sharp recession into consistent economic growth. Per Forbes:
The unemployment rate shows pretty much the same progression from President Obama to President Trump. The unemployment rate started to climb the last two years of President Bushâs second term and substantially in Obamaâs first year as the Great Recession that he had inherited was having a huge impact.
Bushâs last four years in office:
Obamaâs time in office:
Trumpâs through September:
The Trump White House has voiced their disagreement with this assertion. Per Politico:
he historically low unemployment rate fits neatly into Trump’s promise of restoring the American economy’s bygone dominance.
Job Growth: The Obama Era Falls Short
One of the simplest ways to measure employment is to look at the rate of job growth during a presidency. Here, the math is straightforward. With one month to go, the number of payroll jobs in the United States is up 8.4 percent since Obama took office. Of the last three two-term presidents, that falls considerably short of the levels reached by Presidents Reagan and Clinton , but substantially better than the results achieved by George W. Bush .
There are also some ways in which this isnt a fair comparison. Thats because job growth rates are heavily shaped by two things that a president cant control: the state of the economy when they take office, and demographic forces that shape the availability of workers.
Here, Presidents Reagan and Clinton had a big advantage. Both took office not long after a recession had ended, meaning that their job growth results were boosted by unemployed workers who were returning to the work force. And both presided during a time when baby boomers were in prime working years and women were entering the work force.
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Fact Check: Video Comparing Trump And Obama Unemployment Rates And Job Growth Is Misleading
11 Min Read
Social media users have been sharing a video with statistics claiming that the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump had lower unemployment rates and created more jobs than his predecessor Barack Obamas administration. However, government figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show that while most of the figures in the video were true for some months, they are not necessarily representative of unemployment levels during the two administrations and do not take into the effects of the 2007-2009 Great Recession and the coronavirus pandemic.
The posts do not say whether the figures represent an average or a specific point in time.
Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that unemployment levels have varied during both presidencies . All unemployment figures below are taken from this BLS data, where the options under the graph title allow viewers to see the data from different demographics. Data for all demographics can be seen all at once by clicking show table under the graph.
When Obama was inaugurated in Jan. 2009 the United States was suffering from the worst recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s. The Great Recession lasted from Dec. 2007 to June 2009 . During the Trump presidency unemployment figures and job growth started strong but have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic since March 2020 .
Economic Rescue Recovery And Rebuilding On A New Foundation
In 2008, the American people turned to Barack Obama to lead the country through the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. His North Star was to make the economy work for the middle class and for those fighting to join it. He took steps to create jobs, rescue the auto industry, and rebuild the economy on a new foundation for growth and prosperity.
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Network Neutrality And Government Use Of Information Technology
In a June 2006 podcast, Obama expressed support for telecommunications legislation to protect network neutrality on the Internet, saying: It is because the Internet is a neutral platform that I can put out this podcast and transmit it over the Internet without having to go through any corporate media middleman. I can say what I want without censorship or without having to pay a special charge. But the big telephone and cable companies want to change the Internet as we know it.
Obama reaffirmed his commitment to net neutrality at a meeting with employees in November 2007, at which he said, once providers start to privilege some applications or web sites over others, then the smaller voices get squeezed out, and we all lose. At the same event, Obama pledged to appoint a Chief Technology Officer to oversee the U.S. governments management of IT resources and promote wider access to government information and decision making.
In a February 2014 official blog post titled We The People Response: Reaffirming the White Houses Commitment to Net Neutrality, the Obama administration, via Chief Technology OfficerTodd Park, once again reaffirmed its commitment to net neutrality by stating, Preserving an open Internet is vital not to just to the free flow of information, but also to promoting innovation and economic productivity.TheTrump administration has repealed net neutrality
