Based on financial data released this week, U.S. jobless claims and foreclosures have surged in America, painfully illustrating the financial crisis that began in 2008, is ongoing, as government remedies have failed to stem losses and fix the problem. U.S. foreclosures also set another record.
The financial health of Uncle Sam (Photo credit: David Dees)
A report this week also revealed, President Obama's mortgage relief program wasted billions in taxpayer money and produced very little positive results. Something similar transpired with Obama's jobs program.
U.S. President Barack Obama has gotten into a verbal sparring match with Republicans over the latest job numbers released to the public. Days prior, a government report reflected many payrolls in America had shed jobs, yet today, the Obama White House touted figures stating 162,000 jobs have been added to the economy.
Here's hoping another inaccurate job tally has not been released for political reasons, as was done during the Bush administration, where numbers had to be revised to later correct the exaggeration and inaccuracies. Accuracy is needed to address and fix the problems.
April 2, 2010 2:31 p.m. EDT - In turn, Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele blasted the president, dismissing dismissed much of March's job growth as a product of the U.S. Census Bureau's addition of 48,000 jobs for its once-in-a-decade head count of the U.S. population.
"It is unacceptable for President Obama to declare economic success when unemployment remains at 9.7 percent and a large portion of the job growth came from temporary boost in government employment," Steele said.
The U.S. commerce data released for the month of March 2010, reveals the economy is still in trouble, as companies continue to shed a massive number of jobs, home sales are down and national revenue is significantly lagging.
This has confounded the current U.S. Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geithner, but it should not have, as this site has maintained for many months, too much government spending is transpiring on initiatives that are not fruitful in reviving an economy. President Obama has made many changes to America that are not panning out, due to bad timing and overspending.
US treasury secretary Geithner says unemployment is 'terribly high'
Thursday 1 April 2010 16.59 BST - Geithner says Obama is hugely concerned about jobless rate - The treasury secretary Timothy Geithner warned today that US unemployment was "terribly high" and would remain "unacceptably high for a very long time".
The Obama administration was "very worried" about the jobless rate, Geithner said in an interview, which has soared to almost 10% in the wake of the worst economic downturn since the depression...
Thanks to the financial crisis that sprouted under former President, George W. Bush, as a direct result of his terrible tenure in the White House, then spread globally, it is being reported in the Washington Post, the East is looking down on the West, it once revered.
Choices spilling out of Washington, exhibiting poor financial acumen, are not helping matters. America can recover, but not along the path President Obama is currently trotting. If the wild spending continues, by 2012, America is going to be so in debt, prosperity will be a distant memory.
It is time to change course, Mr. President. You cannot continue to spend money that is not your own, in this manner, placing the nation's citizens in indefinite debt.
The Chinese government excoriated the U.S. government as "hypocritical" via denouncing Washington's meddling in other nations' affairs and condemning other countries, while human rights abuses in the United States against Americans and residents continues unabated.
The rebuke was in response to a derogatory report the U.S. government issued on China. The Chinese government also took its American counterparts in Washington to task, for the current global financial crisis, which began in the U.S. corporate sector, that former President George W. Bush, left unattended, labeling in "a free market" which allowed financial corruption to take root and destroy the financial portfolios of many people in America.
The Chinese government stated, as a result of said lax financial policies and lack of corporate policing, many "People are suffering all over the world" having lost their homes, bank accounts and life savings.
China is the largest holder of U.S. debt and has become concerned regarding the $1 trillion dollars it is owed, in the face of the devaluation of the U.S. dollar, due to increased spending in Washington over the past year, in trying to correct former President George W. Bush's horrific decisions.
China calls U.S. a hypocrite over human rights
Fri Mar 12, 2010 9:24am EST - (Reuters) - China accused Washington of hypocrisy on Friday for its criticism of Beijing's restrictions on the Internet and dissent, blaming the United States for the financial crisis and saying its own rights record was terrible.
In its annual survey of human rights in 194 countries issued on Thursday, the U.S. State Department criticized China, along with Cuba, Myanmar, North Korea and Russia.
China's State Council Information Office, or cabinet spokesman's office, issued its own annual assessment of the United States' human rights record in response, and this year it dwelt on America's economic woes.
"The United States not only has a terrible domestic human rights record, it is also the main source of many human rights disasters worldwide," the Chinese report said, according to the official Xinhua news agency.
"Especially a time when the world is suffering serious human rights disasters caused by the global financial crisis sparked by the U.S. sub-prime crisis, the U.S. government has ignored its own grave human rights problems and reveled in accusing other countries."...
The latest Chinese counter-blast to U.S. criticisms said Washington should concentrate on "improving its own human rights."
U.S. President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden
U.S. President Barack Obama's deficit projections are being labeled incorrect, off by as much as $1.2 trillion dollars. This spells terrible trouble for the U.S. economy and reaffirms the Judiciary Report's stated belief, President Obama's economic advisors are not going in the right direction.
As the Judiciary Report has maintained for several months, this massive spending the Obama Administration has undertaken, to correct the widespread damage of the Bush years, is going to end in economic disaster and a different America than you see today.
US deficit tops Obama forecast by 1.2 trillion dollars: CBO
WASHINGTON — US President Barack Obama has underestimated the government budget deficit for the next decade by 1.2 trillions dollars, estimates by Congress showed Friday.
Under Obama's latest budget projections, the cumulative deficit over the 2011-2020 period would be 8.532 trillion dollars, or 4.5 percent of gross domestic product, the nation's economic output.
But the Congressional Budget Office estimated Friday the deficit would snowball to 9.761 trillion dollars or 5.2 percent of GDP.
The CBO expects a deficit "1.2 trillion dollars greater over the 2011-2020 period than what the administration anticipates under the president's budget," CBO director Douglas Elmendorf said in a report Friday.
Last week, Obama's self-proclaimed "Chicago mafia" lost one of its members to a resignation, when the nation's first black Social Secretary, Desiree Rogers, regrettably vacated her post, due to the scandal the Salahis created in crashing a White House state dinner.
This week, the pressure is on for Obama to rein in or relieve Rahm Emanuel of his duties as Chief-Of-Staff. The Judiciary Report does not agree with Rahm's tinseltown tactics in government, as it needs to be left where it belongs, in Hollywood.
There's no place for Hollywood styled decision-making in government, as that is an oxymoron. Most Hollywood shot callers make said plays with a trail of cocaine up their noses, hence the flamboyance, flagrance and lack of frugality and fiduciary responsibility. That does not have any place in a house of government.
Rahm Emanuel
The nation would also be well served in taking a closer look at President Obama's financial advisors, as they are running amok, dispensing terrible advice the President is following to the letter.
America is going to be a very different place by the end of Obama's term if this keeps up. Poverty and financial ruin are on the way with the policies they have set in motion, which they refuse to listen to sound advice on, believing they can suspend the laws of mathematics. Einstein couldn't do it, neither can you.
Two days ago it was announced, new U.S. home sales declined to its lowest levels on record for the month of January 2010. Today, it was reported the sale of preexisting homes in America fell to record low numbers as well, as people are having great difficulty unloading their properties, with a lack of eligible buyers.
This is not good, as it will create more foreclosures, with 2009 establishing a record number of mortgages going into default. Some banks are being cooperative, but some are not. I have heard and read of success stories, regarding homeowners who had their mortgages successfully modified.
However, some banks are still swooping in on mortgages attached to homes with a significant amount of equity and charging excessive, exorbitant penalty and legal fees, in trying to maximize profits.
In one such case, a property was valued at double the amount the bank is owed and a devastated homeowner bulldozed the property rather than let the bank auction it off.
U.S. Economy: Sales of Previously Owned Homes Unexpectedly Fall
February 26, 2010, 12:52 PM EST - Feb. 26 (Bloomberg) -- Sales of previously owned U.S. homes unexpectedly dropped 7.2 percent in January to a seven-month low, indicating a lack of job growth is undermining government incentives to bolster the housing market.
The decline to an annual pace of 5.05 million, reported today by the National Association of Realtors in Washington, was the second-largest on record after December’s 16.2 percent plunge. A separate report showed the economy grew at a 5.9 percent pace last quarter, faster than initially estimated...
The U.S. economy continues to lose homes and jobs at a rapid, record rate, indicating the current government intervention is not working. The U.S. economy refuses to stabilize.
Stimulus money will not solve the nation's ills. It is an artificial sugar high - a temporary financial fix that has already begun to wear off in a matter of months.
It is the equivalent of giving medicine to an economic condition that ends up making it worse. The stock market is also being spurred on by ridiculously low Fed rates and artificially inflated government reports, propped up by stimulus money, whose effect is already in rapid decline.
Additional fiscal steps being taken are not going to work either. Houses of government and leadership need to be wary of following this model.
A sizable reduction of government spending and tax increases on the nation's most wealthy is the appropriate course of action, while giving lower and middle income families a chance to get back on their feet, as they constitute the backbone of the economy and it is the humane thing to do.
What is a matter of concern is the fact, Washington sees that the stimulus' effect has worn off and pushed things even further into negative financial territory, but all they can talk about is spending more money.
In days to come, you shall remember these days and regret them, as the time you spent the nation even further into a colossal financial hole that is not easily filled in or fixed. Desist with the unruly spending of taxpayer money and take a sensible, sound approach to the financial crisis.
New home sales in America hit a record low last month, of 309,000, which is a sign indicative of a weak and struggling economy. It is the lowest number since 1963 when the records began. The economic and financial systems are still log-jammed, for such a negative record to be achieved.
Buying a home is considered the American dream and if that has decreased to such low numeric levels, it should send a terrible signal to Washington that things are still amiss in the financial sector and with the American people's collective finances.
However, it is Washington and the current Congress will just interpret it as "Spend More" taxpayer money, which is the wrong answer.
Apart of the problem is unemployment has skyrocketed, many Americans have filed bankruptcy and as a result of financially challenging times, now have bad credit. It is now extremely difficult to buy a home in America with bad credit and or no job.
New home sales hit record low
Wed Feb 24, 2010 1:25pm EST - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Sales of newly built U.S. single-family homes unexpectedly fell to a record low in January, while mortgage demand for purchases hit a 13-year low last week, fanning fears of renewed housing market weakness.
The Commerce Department said on Wednesday sales dropped 11.2 percent to a 309,000 unit annual rate, the lowest level since records started in 1963, from 348,000 units in December.
It was the third straight monthly drop in new home sales and the largest percentage decline in a year. Analysts, who had expected a 360,000 unit pace, said bad weather was partly to blame and warned of more of the same for February...
U.S. President Barack Obama stated there has not been a financial depression in America, thanks to his record spending, but he is incorrect. Aspects of the financial crisis automatically place it in the category of a depression.
More Americans lost their homes during the 2008 financial crisis, that is ongoing, than during the Great Depression. Real estate tracking agencies and banks repeatedly reiterated that a number of financially derogatory records had been set during the current crisis.
Unemployment hit record highs in a number of U.S. cities (not all), surpassing Great Depression figures. America's national debt is the highest it has ever been in history, once again, surpassing Great Depression levels, even when adjusted for inflation.
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and President Barack Obama
Now, logic dictates, if the Great Depression was classified a "depression" as its name implies and several aspects of this modern day financial crisis have surpassed it, wouldn't the current financial free fall be a "depression" by default.
All these calamities happened under former President George W. Bush, due to his reckless war spending and inattention to Corporate America. Then, it carried over into Obama's tenure, leaving a mammoth mess for him to clean up. Regrettably, President Obama has exacerbated the current crisis via overspending.
And, if you want to get technical, the dictionary defines an economic depression as, "A period marked by slackening of business activity, widespread unemployment, falling prices and wages" and I think we can all agree that has happened between 2008 to 2010 and will continue if not properly corrected.
Side Bar: *light bulb* Maybe I should have just quoted the dictionary to begin with, instead of writing that long, drawn out article.
U.S. President Barack Obama signed an executive order at the White House yesterday, raising America's debt ceiling from $12.394 to $14.294 trillion. That's a lot of debt and sadly, there are no concrete plans to lower it.
U.S. foreclosure rates have spiked yet again, proving not enough is being done by the government and banks, to help home owners out of a national rut.
U.S. Foreclosure Filings Surpass 300,000 for 11th Month in Row
February 11, 2010, 12:46 PM EST - Feb. 11 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. foreclosure filings rose 15 percent in January from a year earlier and exceeded 300,000 for the 11th consecutive month as modification programs failed to keep delinquent borrowers in their homes, RealtyTrac Inc. said.
A total of 315,716 properties received a notice of default, auction or bank seizure last month, or one in 409 households, the Irvine, California-based seller of default data said today in a statement. Filings fell 10 percent from December.
Bank seizures, also known as real-estate-owned or REOs, may rise to a record 3 million this year, RealtyTrac said last month. About 66,000 delinquent loans out of a targeted 4 million by 2012 were permanently modified as of Dec. 31 under the Obama administration’s Home Affordable Modification Program, according to the Treasury Department. About 787,000 mortgages are in trial programs that change loan terms, the Treasury said Jan. 19.
“It’s almost inevitable that modifications will fail,” Michelle Meyer, New York-based U.S. economist for Barclays Capital Inc., said in an interview. “Over the next several months, we should see REOs increase at an accelerated pace.”
Foreclosure filings also fell in January of last year from December, only to rise in subsequent months, RealtyTrac said.
Openly homosexual fashion designer, Alexander McQueen, 40, committed suicide, one week after his mother's passing. The designer, who has made clothes for Lady Gaga and Rihanna, was found hanged in his London flat. Police do not suspect foul play.
The Judiciary Report would like to discourage the public from committing suicide. God gave you life and He does not wish for you to take it, by ending it early. There is no shame in talking to a therapist.
Many countries have free therapists that work for their respective governments, who will speak with you about your problems that have led to feelings of hopelessness and despair. Do not let suicide become an option.
15:27, Thursday, 11 February 2010 - Alexander McQueen- who designed clothes for stars including Rihanna and Lady GaGa - has committed suicide aged 40...
Has the U.S. economy really improved. Banks and other U.S. businesses are still closing in record numbers, Americans still can't find work and today it was announced, due to a revision, the economy has lost 825,000 more jobs.
The current government plans are not working. The government needs to change course, before it's too late and the damage becomes a way of life, stuck in a cycle you can't get out of.
U.S. May Lose 824,000 Jobs as Employment Data Revised: Analysis
Feb. 3 (Bloomberg Multimedia) -- The U.S. may lose 824,000 jobs when the government releases its annual revision to employment data on Feb. 5, showing the labor market was in worse shape during the recession than known at the time.
Click here for a Bloomberg Multimedia interactive visual analysis of the economy’s job losses.
Feb 2, 2:40 PM (ET) - WASHINGTON (AP) - Unemployment rose in most cities and counties in December, signaling that companies remain reluctant to hire even as the economy recovers.
The unemployment rate rose in 306 of 372 metro areas, the Labor Department said Tuesday. The rate fell in 41 and was unchanged in 25. That's worse than November, when the rate fell in 170 areas, rose in only 154 and was unchanged in 48.
The metro employment numbers aren't seasonally adjusted and can be volatile. Many of the increases were due to seasonal factors...
Unlike this president, John Kennedy was an ironist who never fell for his own mystique.
The curtain has come down on what can best be described as a brief un-American moment in our history. That moment began in the fall of 2008, with the great financial panic, and gave rise to the Barack Obama phenomenon.
The nation's faith in institutions and time-honored ways had cracked. In a little-known senator from Illinois millions of Americans came to see a savior who would deliver the nation out of its troubles. Gone was the empiricism in political life that had marked the American temper in politics. A charismatic leader had risen in a manner akin to the way politics plays out in distressed and Third World societies.
Professor Fouad Ajami's opinion piece garnered over 400 comments. He visits the News Hub to discuss his views and offer rebuttals to criticism.
There is nothing surprising about where Mr. Obama finds himself today. He had been made by charisma, and political magic, and has been felled by it. If his rise had been spectacular, so, too, has been his fall.
"Video: Obama Budget Would Create Highest-ever Deficit"
U.S. President Barack Obama continues to defend his controversial position in spending record sums of money and hiking up the national deficit, which many see as the wrong path to financial recovery. He restated his claims today in New Hampshire on America's East Coast, regarding these hefty spending initiatives. Somebody please give him a calculator, as this is not going to add up.
U.S. President Barack Obama
A few fellow members of his Democratic Party erroneously insist, America must "spend its way out of the recession" which in actuality is a depression. Such financially reckless, spendthrift thinking is a faulty premise and dangerous assumption. America is currently racking up enough debt to break the nation in two in coming years.
Clyburn: 'We've got to spend our way out of this recession'
By Michael O'Brien - 02/01/10 12:56 PM ET - The U.S. government must spend its way out of the recession, the Democrats' third-ranking House leader stressed Monday.
Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.), the House majority whip, said that trying to find greater savings in the budget, which was released by President Barack Obama this morning, wouldn't help alleviate the recession.
"We've got to make some decisions here as to what's in the best interests of our country going forward," Clyburn said during an appearance on Fox News. "And I think the best interest is to invest in education, control these deficits, while at the same time trying to get people back to work."
"We're not going to save our way out of this recession," the majority whip added. "We've got to spend our way out of this recession, and I think most economists know that." ...
"You're not going to bring down the deficits, you're not going to eliminate these problems without growing this economy," he said. "And you're not going to grow the economy by wishing it; you've got to invest in it. And that's what we're doing with this budget."
U.S. President Barack Obama took to a press conference today to explain himself and his massive new budget that has alarmed the nation. People still fail to grasp why all this record spending is necessary and the explanations that have been furnished have failed to assuage public angst and anger regarding the ever rising national deficit. You should do more to explain the budget, as what you have stated still leaves many questions unanswered.
U.S. President Barack Obama is seeking to implement a record $3.8 trillion budget for 2011, increasing the national deficit by an unprecedented $1.6 trillion dollars. This is trouble waiting to happen.
Unprecedented, crushing debt, can topple the federal government, forcing a complete restructuring of the national legislative hierarchy, due to lack of funds. If the national debt becomes too high, there will only be money for local government, while many federal agencies would face the chop.
One cannot keep pressing up money and expect foreign nations will keep opening their coffers to dole out generous loans, if repayment is painfully not possible, due to dire financial straits. Too much spending is going on and too little saving.
Deficit to Hit All-Time High
JANUARY 31, 2010, 7:36 P.M. ET - Obama's $3.8 Trillion Budget Forecasts a $1.6 Trillion Shortfall for 2010 Before It Drops.
WASHINGTON—President Barack Obama will propose on Monday a $3.8 trillion budget for fiscal 2011 that projects the deficit will shoot up to a record $1.6 trillion this year, but would push the red ink down to about $700 billion, or 4% of the gross domestic product, by 2013, according to congressional aides.
The deficit for the current fiscal year, which ends on Sept. 30, would eclipse last year's $1.4 trillion deficit, in part due to new spending on a proposed jobs package. The president also wants $25 billion for cash-strapped state governments, mainly to offset their funding of the Medicaid health program for the poor.
