It is rare these days when I am able to smile about anything that is going on in our government, but I had to grin when I read how easy it was for Barney Frank to allow Treasury Secretary Snow to paint himself into a corner. And then how flummoxed he was to find himself there with no escape!!!
This can be found here (of all places): http://blogs.wsj.com/...
Treasury Secretary John Snow, testifying before a House committee today, boasted in prepared remarks, "Average hourly earnings are picking up. We learned from this month's jobs report that average hourly earnings have risen 3.8% over the past 12 months -- their largest increase in nearly five years."
But Snow's briefers apparently didn't prepare him for questioning by Rep. Barney Frank, the sharp-tongued Massachusetts Democrat who delights at cross examination of administration witnesses.
"Mr. Secretary," Frank said, "I agree with much of your statement, but I confess to some trouble with your citation of the rise in hourly wages. What's the CPI increase over the past 12 months? Do you know?" Replied Snow: "Well, about 5, I think, 5.1."
To which Frank said: "OK, because you've got hourly earnings going up 3.8%, and I believe...that's not adjusted for inflation. So my understanding is that even in the past 12 months, which are your best 12 months, hourly wages have barely kept up with inflation..... But you would acknowledge that 3.8% increase in wages you're talking about is nominal, not adjusted for inflation, correct?
Snow, who has a Ph.D. in economics, was a bit flummoxed at first. "I'll have to go back, Congressman, and check these numbers," he said.
"That's not a trick question," Frank insisted.
"I know it's not," replied the Treasury secretary. He then confirmed that the 3.8% was nominal, that is unadjusted for inflation.
The concession didn't satisfy Frank. "I think it's misleading to talk about the 3.8% over 12 months when that doesn't take into account inflation, which was very close to that. I'd ask you to submit to us, what's it been over 24 months, 36 months and 48 months, because, in fact, during this recovery...wages have dropped... compared to inflation." Mr. Snow promised to deliver more numbers, and Frank turned to another subject.
I love this, because it is so rare that anyone in the House or Senate on any committee these days actually asks the right questions, thereby forcing the dishonesty of this administration to rear its ugly head. It will be interesting to see if Treasury Director Snow is able to deliver more accurate numbers or just what he is able to deliver.
It is discouraging to the max, however, when you read the following:
The Economic Policy Institute, meanwhile, noted today that the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data, released today, show that hourly and weekly earnings of production and non-supervisory workers in April finally returned to levels where they were, adjusted for inflation, in November 2001 when the current economic recovery began.
Hourly wages have just finally returned to the levels they were in 11/2001? I don't know why seeing this in bold black-and-white text makes it seem so much worse. I already knew that my own salary has dropped 45% since 2001. I guess just knowing that there are so many others in the same boat makes it all the more disheartening.