New yahoo report says Ft. Myers among cities with highest poverty increase in nation (rated, news)

[justNancy]

Originally Posted by rikoshaprl

I have to agree with Nancy that the democrats have done a poor job with the economy since taking control of congress in 2006 and they will pay in the upcoming elections.

If I'm the Nancy you're referring to, please don't twist my words. I never said that at all. I just said that reporting bad news is good news for the Republicans.

Also, the Democrats were elected in Nov 2006, right? So why do Republicans always say from 2006 when trying to make a point? The Republicans were already in control when Bush was elected. So with a Republican President and a Republican controlled Congress for 6 years, they economy was driven into the ground and the Republicans continue to blame the Democrats.

If the Democrats took office in Jan 2007 and in 2008 we were told the economy was collapsing (remember John McCain suspending his campaign & rushing off to Washington to meet with Bush in Oct 08?) how can anyone blame the Democrats?

This is not the Political Forum, so I'll stop. I was only answering your post. As the beginning of this article says, "The human capacity for self-delusion never cease to amaze me."

[URL="http://www.businessinsider.com/republican-deficit-hypocrisy-2009-11"]Republicans Are Deficit Hypocrites[/URL]

[justNancy]

Originally Posted by yoko

Such reports have negative effect on local real estate prices and that seems to be worse than facing poverty and homelessness among children!

I agree that negative media coverage can hurt our local economy. However, when you see the same articles in the News-Press and on local TV, the facts can't be denied. This is very scary.

On the other hand, a pastor of a tiny church with less than 50 members got a lot more media coverage. When someone who looks like a psychotic Jed Clampett can create such a stir, I never know what to believe about this crazy world any more.

Was I the only person who thought "Why does it always have to be someone in Florida?"

[ChrisA70]

Originally Posted by rikoshaprl

The original post was about retirees leaving because locals can't find jobs. I think just the opposite will occur. More retirees will come creating more jobs (less poverty).

From the article-
"In 2008, the poverty level stood at $22,025 for a family of four, based on an official government calculation that includes only cash income before tax deductions. It excludes capital gains or accumulated wealth. It does not factor in non-cash government aid such as tax credits or food stamps, which have surged to record levels in recent years under the federal stimulus program".

I was saying that $22,000 is not a lot of money in Cape Coral but it is much less in other areas such as NYC because of the higher cost of living in those places. So the premise of the poverty level being worse in CC is flawed. Plus more gov't money has been allocated to the areas that have had the worst foreclosure problems and this is not reflected in the poverty level.

I have to agree with Nancy that the democrats have done a poor job with the economy since taking control of congress in 2006 and they will pay in the upcoming elections.

You are confused, nancy is not saying the Democrats got us here, it was certain idiot for a president and the republicans that got us where we are, sorry to spoil the fun...

[nhkev]

I voted for clinton both terms, voted for gore vs bush, I idid vote bush over kerry so I'd say I am an independant. You can blame a lot of things on bush because he was an easy target, but anyone who blames this economy on bush is eeither closed minded political or lacks the understanding of what really caused it in the first place.

[rikoshaprl]

Oh! Nancy when you said: "Bad news is good news for Republicans, since so many people have amnesia or short term memories about what & who drove us into this mess", I thought you meant that until January 2007 the economy was booming and unemployment was 4.8%. Since the democrats took over unemployment is now 9.8%, That is what is causing this poverty.
If you want to talk about what caused the housing collapse that is another thread.

[kroeran]

I thought in the American system, congress, and the Senate in particular, held the balance of power in the budget and legislative process, rather than the President, except maybe regarding foreign policy, going to war, and appointing the public service?

Isn't it the hill oversight committees that ran the financial industry oversight, which are chaired by the magority party?

House Financial Services Committee hearing, Sept. 25, 2003:
Rep. Frank: I do think I do not want the same kind of focus on safety and soundness that we have in OCC [Office of the Comptroller of the Currency] and OTS [Office of Thrift Supervision]. I want to roll the dice a little bit more in this situation towards subsidized housing. . . .

[justNancy]

Originally Posted by nhkev

I voted for clinton both terms, voted for gore vs bush, I idid vote bush over kerry so I'd say I am an independant. You can blame a lot of things on bush because he was an easy target, but anyone who blames this economy on bush is eeither closed minded political or lacks the understanding of what really caused it in the first place.

You're partly right. Rather than spend a lot of time writing a response, I'll just post this link to a 2008 article I agree with, which says that although Bush was already dealing with a serious problem when he entered office, he did absolutely nothing to stop it. Obama is trying to turn things around and he needs time to do it. Bush had 8 years and most of them was with a Republican controlled House & Senate, so why not give Obama and the Democrats a shot?

[URL="http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=is_bush_to_blame_for_the_economy"]Is Bush To Blame For The Economy?[/URL]

"But President Bush did not take any steps to seriously counteract these real economic problems. His strategy was to give out tax breaks that heavily favored the richest people in the country. He also gave business, including the energy companies, the defense contractors, the drug companies, the insurance companies, and the financial industry, everything they wanted from the government, at the public's expense."

The only thing I want to add, which I've said many time before, is that I am always puzzled when I see people protesting against bills that will benefit them. In the case of letting tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans expire, it boggles my mind that people on Soc Sec or working for minimum wage are so concerned about those who make $2 million a year when the tax rate will still be lower than any time in history. As many books on the economy point out, because the earnings of the top 1% has grown so rapidly, the gap in class has widened so much that the United States is "roughly on par with Uruguay, Argentina, and Ecuador." Timothy Noah in The Great Divergence

[rikoshaprl]

It is alway easy to blame the last president for what is wrong now (although I never remember Bush doing it). Bush wasn't handed a good hand with the economy in recession, the stock market crashing with the .com bubble bursting and then 911. But he put his tax cuts into place and completely turned the economy around. Poverty rates ranged from 11.0% to 12.5% during his presidency (11.7 when he took office).

[justNancy]

Originally Posted by rikoshaprl

It is alway easy to blame the last president for what is wrong now (although I never remember Bush doing it). Bush wasn't handed a good hand with the economy in recession, the stock market crashing with the .com bubble bursting and then 911. But he put his tax cuts into place and completely turned the economy around. Poverty rates ranged from 11.0% to 12.5% during his presidency (11.7 when he took office).

Actually, even Sean Hannity agrees with a guest that Bush blamed Clinton for 9/11, the economy and North Korea! At least he didn't dispute it.

[URL="http://mediamatters.org/mmtv/201008020067"]Powers reminds Hannity that President Bush blamed Clinton for N. Korea, economy, and 9-11 | Media Matters for America[/URL]

Then there's this:

[URL="http://money.cnn.com/2002/08/07/news/economy/bush_cheney/"]Bush says he inherited recession - Aug. 7, 2002[/URL]

[rikoshaprl]

Do you really want to go down that road. You will lose all credibility. There has hardly been a speech that obama has given that he didn't blame Bush for something. And he even blames Bush by name several times. He is the biggest cry baby we ever had as president.
In the example you gave Bush only said that there was a recession when he took office. CNN then says Bush implied that it was Clinton's recession.