(Fox News) In an effort to cut the unemployment rate among veterans, the Obama administration is calling for a new conservation program that would put veterans to work rebuilding trails, roads and levees on public lands.

Let’s give him some credit for wanting to reduce the unemployment rate among veterans, even if it is surely politically motivated, geared towards peeling off some veteran support from the GOP for Election 2012. But, let’s face it, it is pathetic that Obama thinks the best use of men and women who served in the most professional, educated, modern, and high-tech military ever seen is to get them jobs as menial workers. Granted, they would get paid well, being federal money and all. But, they are certainly more capable then being offered ditch digger jobs. Not to mention simply creating new government jobs, rather than private sector ones.

Of course, much like with his Stimulus, the jobs probably do not exist. Furthermore, the idea, like most of his ideas, isn’t particularly original

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said the Civilian Conservation Corps that operated during the 1930s could be viewed as a model for what the administration will try to accomplish through its “Veterans Jobs Corps.” He said that the administration will propose spending $1 billion that would be used to put an estimated 20,000 veterans to work restoring habitat and eradicating invasive species, among other activities.

So now the Obama admin. is looking towards Depression era make-work programs that failed to stimulate the economy, and helped keep the USA mired in depression for a decade.

Anyhow, The Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza called the speech a “confrontation wrapped in kumbaya”

At first listen, President Obama’s State of the Union address had all the hallmarks of the sort of bipartisan, let’s-do-the-right-thing-for-America tone that characterized his 2008 presidential campaign.

Probably because it was a campaign speech, in which Obama has proved further that he is only interested in being president of some Americans, and not others.

But, listen closer and a more hard-edged, challenging tone reveals itself— a preview of what the incumbent will likely sound like as he seeks a second term this November.

“We’ve come too far to turn back now,” said Obama at one point. “As long as I’m President, I will work with anyone in this chamber to build on this momentum. But I intend to fight obstruction with action, and I will oppose any effort to return to the very same policies that brought on this economic crisis in the first place.”

First, those policies were primarily Democrat ones, and who was in charge of Congress when the economy went south? Yup, Democrats. Second, if we do not turn back now, we’ll end up going over the falls like Greece, Italy, and other European countries.

Later, he offered an even more blunt challenge: “With or without this Congress, I will keep taking actions that help the economy grow.” He also repeatedly urged Congress to “send me a bill”, making clear that the ball, legislatively and politically, was in their court.

Well, gee wiz, Barry, the House GOP has passed over 30 economic bills which are languishing in the Democrat controlled Senate. Perhaps you should have a talk with Harry Reid, ya think? But, I guess it is easier for Obama to mimic Hugo Chavez then Bill Clinton, who mostly played well with others and realized that the game is about leadership and compromise, rather than abusing one’s political opponents and becoming a tin pot dictator.

Obama even had the temerity to whine at the Republicans for not immediately passing the payroll extension for a whopping two months, and he wants a long term extension, which is what Republicans wanted in the first place.

Anyhow, over at Speaker Boehner’s website, we find a few things Obama didn’t say during his 7,000 word campaign speech

“My policies are hurting families and small businesses, and making the economy worse.” Since President Obama took office, 1.7 million fewer Americans have jobs, gas prices have doubled, and families have endured nearly three years of an 8 percent or higher jobless rate.

“I’m to blame for the failure of my policies to create jobs and strengthen our economy.” President Obama has resorted to the politics of division, blaming everything and everyone from Congress to his predecessors to the American people to ATMs for his poor economic record.

“I have listened to the American people and will approve the Keystone XL energy pipeline.” The Keystone project, which would create at least 20,000 new jobs in manufacturing and construction, is supported by lawmakers in both parties, labor unions, governors, and editorial boards across the country. And US News reports most Americans want the pipeline built too.

“My own hand-picked jobs council has urged me to embrace the Republican approach to job creation – and I’m going to take their advice.” Not only does the president’s jobs council report align with the Republican approach to creating new private-sector jobs, it reflects legislation already passed by the House and awaiting action in the Democratic-controlled Senate. See here.

Along with a few more. Oh, and apparently Obama didn’t take the time discuss his signature legislation, Obamacare. He ignored it. I wonder why?

Crossed at Pirate’s Cove. Follow me on Twitter @WilliamTeach.

(The Hill) President Obama ended 2011 by predicting a contentious 2012.

In his final weekly address of the year, the president said he was hopeful about making progress on his agenda in the coming year but warned that it wouldn’t be easy.

“We’ve got some difficult debates and some tough fights to come,” Obama said. “As I’ve said before, we are at a make-or-break moment for the middle class. And in many ways, the actions we take in the months ahead will help determine what kind of country we want to be, and what kind of world we want our children and grandchildren to grow up in.”

And how right Obama is: do we want a country like Greece, which is where Obama and the Democrats are leading us? Or, do we want to have a country which is self sustaining?

As President, I promise to do everything I can to make America a place where hard work and responsibility are rewarded – one where everyone has a fair shot and everyone does their fair share. That’s the America I believe in. That’s the America we’ve always known. And I’m confident that if we work together, and if you keep reminding folks in Washington what’s at stake, then we will move this country forward and guarantee every American the opportunities they deserve.

He forgets that he is part of Washington, and part of the problem. But, don’t forget to sign up for Obama 2012 emails. Team Obama is using whitehouse.gov, the official website of the office of the POTUS, to mine email addresses to solicit campaign donations again.

(Politico) Watch out incumbents: Only 17 percent of Americans say they are satisfied with the way things are going in the United States in 2011, the second lowest annual average ever, a new Gallup poll Thursday shows.

Since Gallup began asking the question gauging satisfaction in the country in 1979, the annual average was lower only in 2008 at 15 percent.

And which Party controlled the purse strings in 2008? Democrats.

Twenty-six percent named the economy in general, 25 percent mentioned and issue of unemployment and jobs, 16 percent chose dissatisfaction with the government and politicians while 12 percent said the biggest problem was the federal budget deficit.

Now, why are people so darned negative? It couldn’t possibly be the record deficits, record (and rising) debt, high and stagnant unemployment, large amounts of citizens who have given up on the job market, rising real prices, high fuel costs, a government that wastes taxpayers money and mortgages the future of our descendents to China (which also pays for the expansion of China’s military), debt payments that will soon be larger than our military budget, low consumer confidence, a president that is unable to lead, and spends most of his time campaigning, vacationing, or playing golf, and a government that is incapable of addressing the serious problems facing this country. Those are the ones right off the top of my head.

And who is the President now? Hey, Bush would have been blamed for all of this. The buck stops at the Resolute Desk Presidential Golf Cart.

But, to be fair, it was 11% back in September. So, Obama’s US satisfaction rate has rebounded from “Holy Sh*t, that’s terrible!” to “What the hell is this chump doing?”

Crossed at Pirate’s Cove. Follow me on Twitter @WilliamTeach.

(Real Clear Politics) “Layoffs too often became permanent, not part of the business cycle. And these changes didn’t just affect blue collar workers. If you were a bank teller or a phone operator or a travel agent, you saw many in your profession replaced by ATMs and the internet,” President Obama said at a campaign event in Kansas.

Jobs have always been replaced as technology moved forward. The milk man had to learn a new job. So did the guys who drove the horse drawn coal delivery carts. So did that nasally lady who answered your phone call and transferred it to SYcamore-4-3319, rather than it being automatically done as it is nowadays. You can find numerous examples of this happening over time. And all as part of the “business cycle”, showing that Obama has absolutely no clue as to how business works.

The whole speech itself was one huge class warfare speech, given by a guy who is himself a 1%er, and refuses to pay more in taxes and do his “fair share”.

Crossed at Pirate’s Cove. Follow me on Twitter @WilliamTeach.

People across the working spectrum suffered job losses in recent years: bricklayers and bookkeepers as well as workers in manufacturing and marketing.

But only a select few workers have fully regained their footing during the slow recovery.

They then provide a story of one woman who has, followed by

Even though the Labor Department is expected to report on Friday that employers added more than 100,000 jobs in November, a new study shows just how rare people like Ms. Mowery are. According to the study, to be released Friday by the John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development at Rutgers, just 7 percent of those who lost jobs after the financial crisis have returned to or exceeded their previous financial position and maintained their lifestyles.

The vast majority say they have diminished lifestyles, and about 15 percent say the reduction in their incomes has been drastic and will probably be permanent.

We can thank the horrific and ridiculous policies of the Obama and the Democrats for this hopeless state of affairs. This is why people with little to no experience in business who have political axes to grind, not to mention using hundreds of billions of taxpayer funds for political payback, should not be in charge of economic policies. All the Democrats have done was extend the pain, and turned America’s economic future sour.

Crossed at Pirate’s Cove. Follow me on Twitter @WilliamTeach.

Think life is not as good as it used to be, at least in terms of your wallet? You’d be right about that. The standard of living for Americans has fallen longer and more steeply over the past three years than at any time since the US government began recording it five decades ago.

Bottom line: The average individual now has $1,315 less in disposable income than he or she did three years ago at the onset of the Great Recession – even though the recession ended, technically speaking, in mid-2009. That means less money to spend at the spa or the movies, less for vacations, new carpeting for the house, or dinner at a restaurant.

Who was in charge of the government during that time? Except for taking over the House 10 months ago, it has been all Democrats. Their horrible policies have kept the economy from regaining any strength.

What has led to the most dramatic drop in the US standard of living since at least 1960? One factor is stagnant incomes: Real median income is down 9.8 percent since the start of the recession through this June, according to Sentier Research in Annapolis, Md., citing census bureau data. Another is falling net worth – think about the value of your home and, if you have one, your retirement portfolio. A third is rising consumer prices, with inflation eroding people’s buying power by 3.25 percent since mid-2008.

Unless you work for the government, where your income has soared. Remember the days when being a government employee was a thankless task where you would not get rich? No more. But, if you are a typical private sector worker, or a senior citizen, you are basically screwed. Obama and the Democrats continue to pursue the same failed Keynesian economic policies that took America to this point. The original Stimulus, almost one trillion dollars, failed to do anything for the middle class. The follow up legislation did nothing. The Obamacare boondoggle has hurt more than helped. And Obama is running around pushing his newest “jobs” bill which will hire/retain hundreds of thousands of, yup! government workers in the form of teachers and first responders. Oh, there’ll be a few temporary jobs for those of you who know how to patch pavement and re-re-paint bridges. Then you’re back on unemployment yet again.

Crossed at Pirate’s Cove. Follow me on Twitter @WilliamTeach. Please sign the drill now petition.

(Fox News) Most American voters blame bad leadership for the condition of the economy, and think Democrats and Republicans alike have hurt more than helped the situation.

That’s according to a Fox News poll released Friday.

President Obama recently said his policies had gotten the economy “moving again” until a six-month “run of bad luck” set things back. That run included the earthquake in Japan, uprisings in the Middle East and the European debt crisis.

Still, by 6-to-1 voters blame the economy on bad leadership (75 percent) rather than bad luck (12 percent). That includes 89 percent of Republicans, 72 percent of independents and 66 percent of Democrats.

Who’s providing that bad leadership? Almost half of voters — 45 percent — think President Obama’s actions have hurt the economy. That’s 19 percentage points more than the 26 percent who say he’s helped, while 28 percent say he has “not made much of a difference.”

By a 28 percentage-point margin, voters are more likely to think the actions of Congressional Democrats have hurt the economy.

And, just to be fair, let’s mention that 35% say that Congressional Republicans have hurt, according to the poll. Unfortunately, even though 2/3rds think raising taxes in the middle of a recession is a bad idea

That said, 57 percent of voters think it is a good idea to tax the wealthiest Americans more because it will help grow the economy and reduce the deficit.

Too bad the poll didn’t ask “why is raising taxes on the rich a good idea”, but, that would require a free form answer. First grade thought answers such as “to pay their fair share” and “they made their money by stealing it off the backs of others” would not be allowed.

Yet most doubt the tax increases recently proposed by President Obama will be used to reduce the deficit. By a 61-26 percent margin, voters think that money would primarily be used to fund more government spending.

Boom! That’s what will happen. In no way will any tax increases be used to reduce the deficit and debt. This is Washington. It will never happen.

Crossed at Pirate’s Cove. Follow me on Twitter @WilliamTeach. Please sign the drill now petition.

(CNN) Three years after a financial crisis pushed the country deep into recession, an overwhelming number of Americans – 90% – say that economic conditions remain poor.

The number, reported Friday in a new CNN/ORC International Poll, is the highest of Barack Obama’s presidency and a significant increase from the 81% who said conditions were poor in June.

The persistent pessimism indicates that Americans are feeling a level of hardship in line with the official statistics. Unemployment stands at 9.1%, economic growth is barely above stall speed, and the housing market remains tied in knots.

Fortunately, the Democrat Senate is prepared to pass Obama’s “jobs” plan right now….oh, wait, they don’t have the Dem votes? Bummer.

Unfortunately, there are still an enormous amount of idiots out there in America who buy into Liberal propaganda and talking points

Asked which administration is to blame, 52% of Americans blame the previous Republican regime, while only 32% point a finger at Obama and Democrats.

Bush has been out of office for closing in on 3 years now, and Democrats had a full two years of owning the White House and Congress to enact their fixes. They failed miserably. Somehow, this is Bush’s fault (?).

Crossed at Pirate’s Cove. Follow me on Twitter @WilliamTeach. Please sign the drill now petition.

US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has called on European leaders at the G20 in Washington to send a “decisive signal” that they have a strategy for tackling the debt crisis.

Mr Geithner said there had been an erosion of confidence and that there was a “huge premium” on early action.

But he added he was confident that Europe would do what was necessary.

Perhaps Geithner should speak to his boss first regarding the US debt. Or, maybe he has, and is sick to death of hearing Obama parrot the phrase “raise taxes, raise taxes. Obama want a cracker”.

“The most important thing that needs to happen now is to see a more decisive signal from the European leaders, that they have a strategy that can restore confidence in their will to assault this,” he said.

Speaking to Martin Wolf for a forthcoming Radio Four documentary, Mr Geithner said that it was important to see fast action.

“These things have the classic dynamic that the longer you wait, the harder it is to solve, the more expensive it is to solve. There’s a huge premium on early action.”

So, why has the Democrat Party and (NM)President Obama waited so long? Why did the Democrats freak out and vote against a $1 billion reduction to “green” energy programs.

Mr Geithner acknowledged that the US was not blameless in the crisis.

“We’re hardly in a position to cast aspersions on the quality of political action you’re seeing around the world because our politics are so difficult.

“And of course we did a lot of damage to the world in the early stages of the crisis, but we also responded with force and alacrity,” he said.

We responded by spending spending spending. And then the Democrats ignored the debt by spending even more. With a side dish of spending. But, of course, Geithner is blaming Bush, and forgetting which Party held Congress.

Crossed at Pirate’s Cove. Follow me on Twitter @WilliamTeach.