Archive for September 2nd, 2011
These are my links for September 2nd from 14:59 to 15:08:
- Black unemployment rate: Highest since 1984 – The August jobs report was dismal for plenty of reasons, but perhaps most striking was the picture it painted of racial inequality in the job market.
Black unemployment surged to 16.7% in August, its highest level since 1984, while the unemployment rate for whites fell slightly to 8%, the Labor Department reported.
"This month's numbers continue to bear out that longstanding pattern that minorities have a much more challenging time getting jobs," said Bill Rodgers, chief economist with the Heldrich Center for Workforce Development at Rutgers University.
Black unemployment has been roughly double that of whites since the government started tracking the figures in 1972.
Economists blame a variety of factors. The black workforce is younger than the white workforce, lower numbers of blacks get a college degree and many live in areas of the country that were harder hit by the recession — all things that could lead to a higher unemployment rate.
But even excluding those factors, blacks still are hit with higher joblessness.
- Texas power officials say new EPA rule could cause ‘emergency events’ – The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, operator of the state's power grid, said in a report today that a new federal environmental regulation would reduce generating capacity and put the grid "at increasing risk of emergency events," including rotating power outages.
The Jan. 1 implementation date for the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule, designed to curb air pollution from power plants, leaves ERCOT with "an extremely truncated period" in which to assess the impact of the rule and "no realistic opportunity to take steps that could even partially offset the substantial losses of available operating capacity," it said.
The report outlined three scenarios, with even the "best-case scenario" expected to result in the loss of an estimated 1,200 to 1,400 megawatts of generating capacity during peak consumption periods, ERCOT said.
"Had this incremental reduction been in place in 2011, ERCOT would have experienced rotating outages during days in August," the report said.
Rotating power outages are implemented as an emergency measure when electricity demand is close to exceeding power supplies from generators.
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Tags: EPA, Obama, Pinboard Links, Unemployment
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President Barack Obama walks with his daughter Sasha Obama across the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Friday, Sept. 2, 2011, to board Marine One en route to Camp David
I think Jen Rubin has it about right.
The Associated Press headline reads: “Employers added no net jobs in August, while unemployment rate was unchanged at 9.1 pct.” The New York Times blasts: “U.S. Showed No Job Growth in August; Rate Stays at 9.1%.” But equally apt would be: “Obama’s reelection prospects nose-dive.” Given that we are, for the first time in 11 months, not creating any new jobs, the outlook for a double-dip recession is real. And, moreover, even if we do not slip into consecutive quarters of negative growth (the technical definition of “recession”), we are certainly heading in the wrong direction. According to Matt McDonald, a former Bush official and now a business consultant, in order to get to 8 percent unemployment by Election Day we would need 270,000 new jobs each month. To get to 8.5 percent we would need to create 215,000 jobs monthly. Just to inch down to 9 percent would require 159,000 jobs every month.
Not surprisingly, the GOP contenders pounced…
With economic conditions so poor and no hope for an immediate turn around, President Obama will struggle to change the narrative – his Presidency is a FAILED one.
But can the Republican Presidential candidates close the deal?
Tags: Barack Obama, President 2012
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These are my links for September 2nd from 11:12 to 11:22:
- The NLRB’s Unlawful Rule – The National Labor Relations Board’s recent rule requiring virtually every employer in America to post a notice describing its employees’ rights under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) is reflective of two disturbing trends at the NLRB: first, a myopic and partisan focus on increasing unionization by whatever means, including bold exercises of authority not within the agency’s statutory mandate; and second, a concomitant disregard of protected employee rights to refrain from union activity.
Under the new rule — enacted just a few weeks after the NLRB proposed to radically shorten the time it takes to conduct secret-ballot elections for union representation, so as to limit employers’ right to express their views about unionization to their employees — an estimated 6 million employers will be required to post a notice in every workplace. Further, if the board finds that an employer’s failure to post the notice was “knowing and willful,” this fact may be deemed presumptive evidence of an “unfair labor practice,” or violation of the NLRA.
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NLRB requiring posters – how ridiculous is this?
- Mr. Obama, tear down those union posters – Just in time for Labor Day, the National Labor Relations Board is making sure that unemployment remains high in America.
Following its attack on Boeing for opening a new plant in South Carolina, and new proposals for quickie union elections, the board will now require employers to put up 11-by-17-inch posters informing workers of their right to unionize.
On Thursday, millions of unemployed Americans will be watching President Obama's speech to Congress, desperately waiting to hear the president explain how employers will create more jobs.
Requiring posters won't benefit the 14 million unemployed Americans, but it is another message to employers that the administration regards them with suspicion. Other countries don't require these posters and welcome American businesses to hire their workers.
The rule, to take effect Nov. 14, is a parting gift from Wilma B. Liebman, the former chairwoman, and a board member since 1997, whose term expired Aug. 28. She believes in unions and their ability to raise workers' incomes.
The required poster size is larger than for notices for minimum wage, employee polygraph protection, family medical leave, equal employment opportunity and other employee rights guaranteed by Congress.
If 20 percent or more employees are most comfortable speaking a language other than English, an additional poster in translation must go up. That's two posters.
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Great!
9.1% unemployment and the feds are mandating posters.
- S.C. Gov. Nikki Haley Calls Obama ‘Cowardly’ – South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley blasted President Obama and the National Labor Relations Board today. She called on President Obama to address the NLRB’s unprecedented lawsuit against Boeing during his jobs speech on Sept. 8. The South Carolina governor made the comments during a conference call with bloggers and journalists this morning.
Citing the fact that at least 1,000 jobs and the future of American aircraft manufacturing hang in the balance with the NLRB’s lawsuit against Boeing, Haley called the president’s silence on the issue “cowardly” and “unacceptable.” Haley also cited the fact that the current White House Chief of Staff and Commerce Secretary both served on Boeing’s board at the time the South Carolina plant was approved, and demanded that he speak up and go on the record whether he agrees with the NLRB’s actions or not.
- John Fund: Why Sarah Palin Is Not Running – Rick Perry has already vaunted – at least temporarily – to the front of the GOP presidential pack, leading Mitt Romney by 29% to 22% in the latest Fox News poll that has Palin at 8%. If Sarah Palin decides that 2012 isn’t her year to run, as I firmly believe is the case, but even sweeter revenge could she have on her media adversaries than to give early backing to a kindred conservative spirit who then went on to win the GOP nomination and indeed the presidency?
That’s why I believe Sarah Palin isn’t running, and why she will ultimately endorse Rick Perry. And if her bet pays off and Perry becomes president, don’t be surprised if the next Secretary of Energy is a certain former Alaska governor who has an aggressive agenda to open up America’s energy resources. Such a platform would also be an effective launching pad for her to start refurbishing her political and policy image.
Sarah Palin may yet have the last political laugh over her doubters.
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Agree.
With the polls as they are and at 47 years old, she is better to wait.
- Crony capitalism: Perry’s Achilles heel? – For a time, Sarah Palin and Texas Gov. Rick Perry were kindred spirits. They both cheered the Tea Party and sneered at establishment Republicans. But then Perry entered the presidential race. Lately, Palin seems determined to turn up the heat on the governor. Last month, CBS reported on Palin at the Iowa fair:
Palin also took a subtle shot at Texas governor Rick Perry, who is entering the presidential race on Saturday. Perry is sometimes dismissed as [a] “weak governor” by virtue of the way his state’s government is structured, and Palin seemed to draw out that distinction when asked to contrast their records.
“You have different functions in the state of Texas and the state of Alaska in terms of governing powers from the governor’s office,” she said, “So it’s tough to compare what the executive duties are. We have a very strong governor’s office . . . but, he’s a great guy and I look forward to seeing him in those debates.”
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A problem for Perry which will be aired at next week's Presidential debate
Tags: Boeing, Haley, NLRB, Obama, Palin, Perry, Pinboard Links
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I think the moniker will stick.
It took the Republican National Committee exactly 94 minutes to coin a new, demeaning title for Barack Obama: President Zero.
In an e-mail to reporters, the committee took note of the worst jobs report in nearly a year, saying that there has been “two and a half years of Obamanomics and nothing to show for it.”
The monthly report, which showed a 17,000-job gain among private employers but no growth over all, provides Mr. Obama’s Republican rivals with the perfect opportunity to criticize him as they prepare to gather for another nationally televised debate next week.
And it gives Mr. Obama an even more gloomy backdrop for the jobs speech he will give to a joint session of Congress next Thursday. In the speech, Mr. Obama is expected to call for a renewed national effort to put people back to work and trim the nation’s deficit.
In the meantime, the Republicans competing for their party’s nomination used the latest jobs numbers to slam the president for his stewardship of the nation’s economy.
Obama certainly has NO record on the economy on which to run for re-election. This bankruptcy of a California company which was propped up by American taxpayer stimulus funds is a case in point.
But, more on point are today’s economic numbers:
Tags: Barack Obama, President 2012, Unemployment Rate
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Day By Day by Chris Muir
Memories from Afghanistan?
Looks like Zed’s compadre from the Afghanistan War has made it to the states.
Tags: Afghanistan, Day By Day
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According to the latest Magellan Strategies Poll.
Magellan Strategies today released the results of an autodial survey of 631 likely 2012 Nevada Republican Presidential caucus attendees. The survey finds Rick Perry leading Mitt Romney by 5 points. Among all voters, Rick Perry has 29% support and Mitt Romney has 24% support. The rest of the Republican field rounds out with Herman Cain with 7%, Michele Bachmann with 6%, Ron Paul with 6%, Newt Gingrich with 5%, Rick Santorum and Jon Huntsman with 1% each, the generic “other candidate” with 2%, and 19% are undecided.
There are 19 per cent undecided here and most pundits have already written off Nevada for Romney due to the large LDS/Mormon population in the state. But, now with surging poll numbers, will Rick Perry come to contest Nevada?
The media market in Clark County is ripe for a media war and unemployment is the highest in the nation.
Perry looks like a player in Nevada. But, will he play against Romney?
Tags: Mitt Romney, Polling, President 2012, Rick Perry
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