The National Bureau of Economic Research has declared that the recession ended, statistically speaking, in June 2009. As reported by the L.A. Times:
Reporting from Washington — The panel of economists that dates the nation’s economic cycles declared Monday that the recession that started in December 2007 ended in June of last year — making it the longest downturn since World War II.
The National Bureau of Economic Research, a private nonprofit research group that is considered the official arbiter of economic contractions and expansions, took pains to note that a determination of the end of the recession doesn’t mean the economy has returned to vigorous growth.
Statistics are one thing, reality is another. As the report recognizes, the recovery has not shown up yet in most of the major measurements on which people focus, like the unemployment rate.
But please note the date: June 2009. Just five months after Obama took office, and four months after the Stimulus Plan was passed but before Stimulus money was spent.
In other words, Obama’s policies and spending had absolutely nothing to do with the statistical end of the recession. Oh, sorry, I forgot that this is the internet, so let me say it more clearly:
OBAMA’S POLICIES AND SPENDING HAD ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH THE STATISTICAL END OF THE RECESSION!!!!!!
So why hasn’t the statistical end of the recession shown up in the unemployment rate, housing, and elsewhere? Could it have something to do with Obama’s policies and spending? The report does not address this issue.
And bank this line from the report for the next time Obama claims all our problems are Bush’s fault (emphasis mine):
The committee decided that any future downturn of the economy would be a new recession and not a continuation of the recession that began in December 2007. The basis for this decision was the length and strength of the recovery to date.
——————————————–
Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube
CLICK HERE FOR FULL VERSION OF THIS STORY