Obama did a heck of a job!
From Recession to Recovery
1. Ended the 2008 Recession
In February 2009, Congress approved Obama's $787 billion economic stimulus package. It cut taxes, extended unemployment benefits, and funded public works projects. The recession ended in July when GDP growth turned positive.
In just seven months, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act pumped $241.9 billion into the economy. That increased growth to a robust 3.9 percent rate by early 2010. By March 30, 2011, almost all ($633.5 billion) of the funds were spent.
2. Modernized Auto Industry
3. Received 2009 Nobel Peace Prize
4. Reformed Health Care
5. Regulated the Big Banks
6. 2010 Tax Cuts
7. Eliminated bin Laden Threat and Withdrew Troops from Iraq and Afghanistan Wars
8. Raised Fuel Efficiency Standards
9. Won 2012 Presidential Re-election
On November 6, 2012, Obama won a second term. Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney promised to repeal Obamacare and Dodd-Frank. Voters were not sure about eliminating health benefits and regulations against big banks. Romney failed to capture the country's imagination by not presenting a new vision for economic growth.
9. Reduced Carbon Emissions
10. Nuclear Agreement With Iran
11. World's Largest Trade Agreement
12. International Climate Change Agreement
13. Best Job Creator
Obama is the biggest job-creating president in U.S. history. His policies put 22.309 million people to work from the depths of the recession in January 2010 to the end of his term. That's because unemployment continued to rise even after the recession ended in 2009. It takes a few months of economic growth before businesses are confident enough to begin hiring again.
Since the beginning of his term, he put 17.267 million people to work. That makes him the second best job-creator, following Bill Clinton. Job gains would have been even better if Congress had approved Obama's proposed Americans Jobs Act.
Maintained Continuation of Federal Reserve Policy - Obama appointed Federal Reserve Vice-Chair Janet Yellen to replace Ben Bernanke. She maintained an expansionary monetary policy that created the lowest interest rates in 200 years. This allowed the early stages of the housing recovery and slow but steady business expansion to continue. That's because Treasury yields affect mortgage interest rates.
Deficit Spending - The major mark against Obama is the increase in the national debt. Part of the reason for this increase was the deficit spending he used to stimulate the economy. Deficits fell in his second term. Obama's total projected deficits are $6.576 trillion.
No Personal Scandal - One achievement has gone unnoticed but is nevertheless admirable. That's Obama's unblemished personal record. President Obama has served longer than any president in decades without the appearance of the word “scandal” on the front page of The Washington Post. The Washington Monthly has published Obama's top 50 accomplishments.
Obama faced the worst recession since the Great Depression. He used expansionary fiscal policy to combat it. He signed the $787 billion Economic Stimulus Act. This act created jobs in education and infrastructure, ending the recession in the third quarter 2009.
Obama bailed out the U.S. auto industry on March 30, 2009. The federal government took over General Motors and Chrysler, saving three million jobs.
Obama used Bush-era TARP funds to create HARP. It rescued homeowners who were upside-down in their mortgages.
Trump entered office without a recession to fight. But he won the election on the impression by voters that the economic growth should be better.
https://www.thebalance.com/what-has-...hments-3306158
https://www.ft.com/content/b5b764cc-...b-e7eb37a6aa8e
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I don't want the government handing out money to individuals OR corporations, and picking winners. Bad decisions have consequences, people and companies need to learn that but our government seems to want to play "pick the winner" too often.
