What Superman and Barack Obama Don’t Have in Common

Posted November 6th, 2009 at 11.33am in Enterprise and Free Markets, Ongoing Priorities.

When Superman rescued a small boy who was plummeting toward the depths of Niagara Falls, it was pretty clear that the kid was in danger and that, but for Superman’s ability to fly, the boy would have faced certain death. It goes without saying that if the boy were not in danger, Clark Kent wouldn’t have donned his cape and flown to the rescue.

Well, back to the surreality of modern American politics, it appears that the purported success of President Barack Obama’s Super Stimulus is as fictional as the Man of Steel, but many of the jobs that Obama claimed to save weren’t in need of rescue.

That, of course, didn’t stop his administration from playing hero in California and taking credit for saving some 26,156 jobs, all at the cost of $268.5 million.

According to the Sacramento Bee:

In a required state report to the federal government, the [California State University] system said the $268.5 million it received in stimulus funding through October allowed it to retain 26,156 employees.

That total represents more than half of CSU’s statewide work force. However, university officials confirmed Thursday that half their workers were not going to be laid off without the stimulus dollars.

“This is not really a real number of people,” CSU spokeswoman Clara Potes-Fellow said. “It’s like a budget number.”

This story comes on the heels of latest reported jobs numbers, which we at The Foundry have said evidences the objective failure of President Obama’s stimulus. It’s not a pretty report card.

The economy shed another 190,000 jobs in October, bringing the number of jobs lost since Obama was sworn in to 3.8 million. Worse still, the unemployment rate rose from 9.8% to 10.2% percent. With only 130.8 million jobs in the U.S. economy, President Obama is now 7.8 million jobs short of what he promised the American people.

This week, President Obama noted that he holds his daughters to a high standard of academic success and said that, as parents, “You’ve got to set a high bar.”

Perhaps the president should set a higher bar of success for U.S. job growth, recognize the truth behind the failure of his stimulus, see a failing grade for what it is, and leave fantastical tales of dramatic rescues to the experts at DC Comics.

Author: Mike Brownfield
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12 Comments

November 6, 2009 Freedom of Speech TX writes:

And, Pelosi and POTUS have the gall to continue down this road with another multi-trillion dollar debt-result vote on health care tomorrow?

Again, no transparency. Politicians and Citizens have no opportunity to read what is in this bill.

Thanks news media for the tough questions. No wonder the White House and the left love going on your networks.

Does the media really understand how patronizing and inept they appear? Amercians see it.

What a sick joke their lack of any meaningful probing questions is. So much for holding government accountable. So much for being the watchdog of the people.

November 9, 2009 Tom King, MO writes:

In an other of your articles I read that obama called the tea party, 9/12 washington group, anti government. I believe that he missed several words in his ever so eloquent speech. I would suggest that he might have more correctly called us anti socialist/marxist/obama government.

November 9, 2009 Daver Ft. Worth writes:

“Look! Up in the sky, is it a bird, is it a plane?”

“No, it’s just that crazy Obama buzzing the taxpayers again!”

November 9, 2009 Dennis A. Social Circle Ga. writes:

This is like all that he does and says, all half-truths and out right false hoods. All this stimilus has done is put is in danger of loseing this country and what made it great. This certainly seems to be the socialists way that obama is intent on going. Vote in 2010.

November 9, 2009 Ken Allison, Tyler, Texas writes:

I do what I can to uphold my oath to support and defend the Constitution. My only motivation for writing this is to point out to my fellow conservatives that the end of the road of our belief is this:
Our federal government has no legitimate authority for ANY program which takes from the rightful owner and gives to someone else. The States can, if they choose, but not the feds.
Now consider that for a moment: no Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, unemployment, food stamps,or anything else requiring a “transfer payment”. Even with a majority in Congress we can’t reasonably abolish these programs overnight but that must be the goal if we are to make a case for Constitutionality.

November 9, 2009 Jerry from Chicago writes:

I’ll tell you what Obama and Superman don’t have in common, credibility.

Superman was a much more credible figure.

November 9, 2009 philip writes:

oBAMA has no stanards let alone morals

November 9, 2009 DAN MOFFATT NUTLEY,N.J. writes:

I THINK I HAVE SOLVED HOW THE GREAT NATIONAL NO MEDIA CAN REDEEM THEMSELVES.I THINK THAT ALL THE REAL REPORTING THAT IS DONE BY THE “NATIONAL ENQUIRER”,THE “GLOBE”,AND THE OTHERS THAT WEEKLY KEEP US IN THE COUNTRY SO WELL INFORMED,SHOULD BE PUT ON THE MASS NO MEDIA PAYROLL.THIS IS THE TRUE SPIRIT OF REPORTING THE TRUE FACTS AFTER ALL.WHAT A CONCEPT.

November 9, 2009 Leon, Durango, CO writes:

Let’s see, kill 5 million energy jobs and 10 million construction jobs, kill a million Health Care Jobs, hurry up Barack Insane Obama! Into the Sky! There are too many jobs left in America!

November 9, 2009 Linda Carlsbad, CA writes:

I like how they lie to us every day! The economy is getting better, oh, we have saved jobs. How stupid do they think we are?

They need to get out of our way and let the free market take care of the economy. No, regulations, bailouts, taxes, this is their way! Hows it working out for you Obama?

Do we seem a little angry? You betcha!

November 10, 2009 Jeanne Stotler, woodbridge, Va writes:

AGain it’s that “they know better what is good for the people” their mentality is that the ones of us who are trying to prevent this illegal act are incompetent and that only liberals are fit to make decisions of this magnitude, we are only here to be taxed. Fire them all next Nov.4th, in the mean time lets go to court and file all kinds of suits, this is illegal and against the Constitution.

November 10, 2009 Jerry from Chicago writes:

To Linda in Carlsbad, CA — You ask, “how stupid do they think we are?”

Linda, they think we are the stupidest people on earth. They think that earth worms are smarter than we are. Maybe they have a point. 53% of those who voted in the last presidential election WERE that stupid.

However, even stupid people can redeem themselves by getting a little smarter. The very next time we have a chance to reduce Mr. Obama’s “veto proof” Senate and House majorities, we need to do so. If we don’t, well, we may be even stupider than they think we are. To borrow a phrase from Forest Gump, “stupid is as stupid does.”

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