While the country and the blogosphere seem transfixed by the salacious moose opera, one of the key economic numbers to be released during the general election campaign spells big trouble for John McCain.
Unemployment has jumped to 6.1 percent, meaning one American worker in 18 is without a job. This takes the country back to the depths of the post-9/11 recession.
Obama said:
Today’s jobs report is a reminder of what’s at stake in this election – John McCain showed last night that he is intent on continuing the economic policies that just this year have caused the American economy to lose 605,000 jobs.
He continued:
John McCain may believe that the fundamentals of our economy are ‘strong,’ but the working men and women I meet every day are working harder for less, the typical working age family’s income is down $2,000 since George Bush took office, and their purchasing power is as low as it’s been in a decade. John McCain’s answer is more of the same: $200 billion in tax cuts to big corporations and oil companies, and not one dime of tax relief to more than 100 million middle-class families. If I am President, I will cut taxes for 95% of all working families and provide an immediate $50 billion to struggling states so that they don’t have to cut back on health care and education and can rebuild roads and schools. That’s the change working families need right now.
McCain, on the other hand, attempted to distance himself from the Bush presidency that he has faithfully supported.
Some Americans have been left behind in the changing economy, and it often seems your government hasn't even noticed.
One wonders if he is trying to run away from Bush, or from his own campaign advisers, who said the economy was fine, and Americans were just whiners.
There will be one more employment report out before the election. The incumbent party rarely does well when the economy is in this kind of shape.