Americans and Facts Disagree With McCain

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.afscmeblog.org/category/election-2008/

The chart displays correctly at the link above.

April 18th, 2008

John McCain on the economy:

“You could make an argument that there’s been great progress economically over that period of time.” (the last seven years)
Bloomberg News, April 17, 2008

You don’t say?

The American people certainly aren’t buying John McCain’s argument. A new Washington Post-ABC News poll released this week shows that 90 percent of the American public gives the economy a negative rating, with a majority saying it’s in “poor” shape. Yet McCain insists on standing by the failed record of George W. Bush.

Maybe the vast majority of the public disagrees with Senator McCain because so do the vast majority of the facts. Check out this chart courtesy of Americans United for Change and their Bush Legacy

The Bush Legacy Jan. 2001 Today
Gas Prices $1.37 $3.45
Unemployment Rates 4.2% 4.8%
Uninsured Under 65 39 Million 47 Million
Workers Covered by Employer-Based Health Insurance 64.2% 59.7%
Home Heating Oil Prices $1.40
Crude Oil Prices (per Barrel) $29.59 $116
Median Household Income $49,163 $48,201
Budget: Deficit/Surplus $431 Billion Surplus Over the Previous 3 Budget Years $734 Billion Deficit Over the Previous 3 Budget Years
National Debt $5.7 Trillion $9.2 Trillion
Consumer Credit Debt $7.65 Trillion $12.8 Trillion
Real GDP Growth 4.09% Over Prior 8 Years 2.65% Over Prior 7 Years
Americans in Poverty 31.6 Million 36.5 Million
Annual Total Health Insurance Premium Cost $6,230 for Family Premium per Year $12,106 for Family Premium per Year
Average Cost of Prescription Drugs $47.54 $68.26
Electricity $914 per Year $1,108 per Year
Groceries $3,021 per Year $3,417 per Year
Jobs Created 1.76 Million per Year Over Previous 8 Years 369,000 Jobs per Year Over Previous 7 Years
Personal Savings Rate +2.3% -0.5%
U.S. Trade Deficit $380 Billion $759 Billion
Strength of U.S. Dollar 1.07 Euros per Dollar 0.68 Euros per Dollar

Energy Information Administration, Accessed 4/18/08; Associated Press

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Accessed 3/26/08

US Census Bureau, Accessed 3/26/08

Washington Post, 8/29/07

Energy Information Administration chart, brochure

Energy Information Administration; Associated Press

United States Census Bureau

Department of Treasury

Insurance Information Institute

Bureau of Economic Analysis

US Census Bureau

Kaiser Study of Health Care Benefits

Average Cost of a Prescription Drug, Kaiser Family Foundation May 2007 Fact Sheet

U.S. Energy Information Administration

Bureau Of Labor Statistics

CRS and College Board 2007-2008 Study

CRS and College Board 2007-2008 Study

Bureau of Labor Statistics

Bureau of Economic Analysis

United States Census Bureau

OANDA.com: The Currency Website

[Cresent City Kid]

1. Nothing left to say

Those numbers say it all.