IN 2008, OBAMA ASKED FLORIDIA, “Will This Country Be Better Off Four Years From Now?” “The question in this election is not ‘Are you better off than you were four years ago?’ We know the answer to that. The real question is, ‘Will this country be better off four years from now?’” (Senator Barack Obama, Remarks At A Campaign Event, Sarasota, FL, 10/30/08)
Obama: Americans Are Not Better Off Than They Were Four Years Ago. OBAMA: “Well I don’t think they are better off than they were four years ago. They’re not better off than they were before Lehman’s collapse, before the financial crisis, before this extraordinary recession that we’re going through.” (ABC News/Yahoo News’ Live Interview, 10/3/11)
- OBAMA: “It Has Been Three Wrenching Years For This Country.” “At a series of fundraisers in New York, where he raised more than $2 million for his campaign and those of other Democrats, Obama acknowledged frustration over the stalemate in Washington that has soured views of his leadership ‘After all that is happening in Washington, it may be tempting to believe that change may not be as possible as we thought,’ he told supporters. ‘It has been three wrenching years for this country,’ said Obama, whose re-election prospects hinge on his ability to heal the economy from the financial crisis that struck before he took office and to lower the 9 percent unemployment rate.” (Laura MacInnis, “Obama Pleads With Voters For Patience On ‘Change,’” Reuters, 11/30/11)
84 Percent Of Americans Say They Are “Not As Well Off” Or “About The Same” Financially Since Obama Became President. (Washington Post-ABC News Poll, 1,000 A, MoE 3.5%, 1/12 – 15/12)
- Only 15 Percent Of Americans Say They Are Better Off Since Obama Became President. (Washington Post-ABC News Poll, 1,000 A, MoE 3.5%, 1/12 – 15/12)
“Nearly Half Of U.S. Adults, 49%, Say They Are Worse Off Financially Today Than A Year Ago, While 29% Say They Are Better Off And 21% Volunteer That Their Finances Haven't Changed.” (Lydia Saad, “Half In U.S Feel Worse Off Financially,” Gallup, 1/18/12)
- “The Worst Evaluations Americans Have Given Of Their Finances Since Gallup Began Measuring This In 1976.” “With barely 3 in 10 saying their finances are better, this is among the worst evaluations Americans have given of their finances since Gallup began measuring this in 1976.” (Lydia Saad, “Half In U.S Feel Worse Off Financially,” Gallup, 1/18/12)
52 Percent Of Americans Say Obama Has Accomplished “Not Much” Or “Little Or Nothing” As President. “Slightly more than half the respondents — 52 percent — say Obama has accomplished ‘not much’ or ‘little or nothing’ as president, while 47 percent offer a positive assessment of his record.” (Jon Cohen And Dan Balz, “Electorate Is Sharply Split Over Obama, Poll Finds,” The Washington Post, 1/18/12)
- Only 12 Percent Of Americans Say Obama Has Accomplished A “Great Deal” As President And 35 Percent Said He Has Just Accomplished A “Good Amount.” (Washington Post-ABC News Poll, 1,000 A, MoE 3.5%, 1/12 – 15/12)
FAILED ON GREEN ENERGY JOBS
Obama Promised Five Million New Green Energy Jobs For Just $15 Billion. “We'll create two million new jobs by rebuilding our crumbling roads, and bridges, and schools, and by laying broadband lines to reach every corner of the country. And I will invest $15 billion a year in renewable sources of energy to create five million new energy jobs over the next decade - jobs that pay well and can't be outsourced; jobs building solar panels and wind turbines and a new electricity grid; jobs that will help us eliminate the oil we import from the Middle East in ten years and help save the planet in the bargain.” (Senator Barack Obama, Remarks At A Campaign Event, Sarasota, FL, 10/30/08)
“Obama’s Efforts To Create Green Jobs Are Lagging Behind Expectations At A Time Of Persistently High Unemployment.” (Carol D. Leonnig and Steven Mufson, “Obama Green-Tech Program That Backed Solyndra Struggles To Create Jobs,” The Washington Post, 9/14/11)
“Federal And State Efforts To Stimulate Creation Of Green Jobs Have Largely Failed.” “Federal and state efforts to stimulate creation of green jobs have largely failed, government records show. Two years after it was awarded $186 million in federal stimulus money to weatherize drafty homes, California has spent only a little over half that sum and has so far created the equivalent of just 538 full-time jobs in the last quarter, according to the State Department of Community Services and Development.” (Aaron Glantz, “Number Of Green Jobs Fails To Live Up To Promises,” The New York Times, 8/18/11)
- “The Green Economy Is Not Proving To Be The Job-Creation Engine That Many Politicians Envisioned.” “In the Bay Area as in much of the country, the green economy is not proving to be the job-creation engine that many politicians envisioned. President Obama once pledged to create five million green jobs over 10 years. Gov. Jerry Brown promised 500,000 clean-technology jobs statewide by the end of the decade. But the results so far suggest such numbers are a pipe dream.” (Aaron Glantz, “Number Of Green Jobs Fails To Live Up To Promises,” The New York Times, 8/18/11)
The Energy Department Has Handed Out $35.2 Billion From The Stimulus, But The Clean Energy Industry Has Yet To Provide The Boost Many Had Hoped For. “The Energy Department handed out $35.2 billion from the Recovery Act for energy efficiency and other initiatives. At the time, clean energy was seen as a potentially powerful industry for job creation. But the industry has yet to provide the boost many had hoped for.” (Vauhini Vara, “Red Flags For Green Energy,” The Wall Street Journal, 10/12/11)
- Obama Administration Promised That The $38.6 Billion Loan Guarantee Program Would Create Or Save 65,000 Jobs, But Nearly Two Years Later, Only A Few Thousand Jobs Have Been Created. “A $38.6 billion loan guarantee program that the Obama administration promised would create or save 65,000 jobs has created just a few thousand jobs two years after it began, government records show. The program — designed to jump-start the nation’s clean technology industry by giving energy companies access to low-cost, government-backed loans — has directly created 3,545 new, permanent jobs after giving out almost half the allocated amount, according to Energy Department tallies. President Obama has made ‘green jobs’ a showcase of his recovery plan, vowing to foster new jobs, new technologies and more competitive American industries. But the loan guarantee program came under scrutiny Wednesday from Republicans and Democrats at a House oversight committee hearing about the collapse of Solyndra, a solar-panel maker whose closure could leave taxpayers on the hook for as much as $527 million.” (Carol D. Leonnig and Steven Mufson, “Obama Green-Tech Program That Backed Solyndra Struggles To Create Jobs,” The Washington Post, 9/14/11)
FAILED ON LOWER HEALTH CARE PREMIUMS
Obama Promised Lower Health Care Premiums. “If you already have health insurance, the only thing that will change under my plan is that we will lower premiums.” (Senator Barack Obama, Remarks At A Campaign Event, Sarasota, FL, 10/30/08)
Factcheck.org: ObamaCare “Falls Short Of Making Health Care ‘Affordable And Available To Every Single American,’ As Promised.” “Furthermore, the law falls short of making health care ‘affordable and available to every single American,’ as promised. The law provides subsidies to help some Americans buy insurance, expands Medicaid and doesn’t allow insurance companies to exclude persons with preexisting conditions. But still, the director of the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office projected 23 million persons will remain uninsured — some because they can’t afford coverage.” (D’Angelo Gore, “Promises, Promises,” Factcheck.org, 1/4/12)
- Factcheck.org: ObamaCare Is Actually Making Health Care “Less Affordable.” “At the moment, the new law is making health care slightly less affordable. Independent health care experts say the law has caused some insurance premiums to rise. As we wrote in October, the new law has caused about a 1 percent to 3 percent increase in health insurance premiums for employer-sponsored family plans because of requirements for increased benefits. Last year’s premium increases cast even more doubt on another promise the president has made — that the health care law would ‘lower premiums by up to $2,500 for a typical family per year.’” (D’Angelo Gore, “Promises, Promises,” Factcheck.org, 1/4/12)
- The Washington Post’s The Fact Checker: “Moreover, at this point it is debatable whether the law has made health care more affordable. Insurance premiums have gone up, in part because of new benefits mandated by the law.” (Glenn Kessler, “The Fine Print In Obama’s ‘Promises Kept’ Ad,” The Washington Post’s “The Fact Checker,” 1/6/12)
“The Cost Of Health Insurance Skyrocketed In 2011 After Several Years Of Relatively Small Increases.” (Jane M. Von Bergen, “Health Insurance Costs Skyrocketing,” The Philadelphia Inquirer, 9/27/11)
- Workers Paid An Average Of $132 More For Family Coverage In 2011 Than They Did In 2010. “Although premiums rose, employers kept the percentage of the premium workers pay about the same: An average of 18 percent for single coverage and 28 percent for family plans. Still, with rising costs, workers paid more, up an average of $132 a year for family coverage. Since 1999, the dollar amount workers contribute toward premiums nationally has grown 168 percent, while their wages have grown by 50 percent, according to the survey.” (Julie Appleby, “Cost Of Employer Insurance Plans Surge In 2011,” Kaiser Health News, 9/27/11)
- The Cost Of Single Employee Coverage Grew 8 Percent According To The Kaiser Survey. “Family plan premiums hit $15,073 on average, while coverage for single employees grew 8 percent to $5,429, according to a survey released Tuesday by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research & Educational Trust. (KHN is an editorially-independent program of the foundation.)” (Julie Appleby, “Cost Of Employer Insurance Plans Surge In 2011,” Kaiser Health News, 9/27/11)
In 2012, Florida Is Expected To See An 8 Percent Increase In Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance Costs. “The cost for employer-sponsored health insurance in Florida is expected to increase 8 percent next year…” (Liz Freeman, “Study: Florida Workers Face 8 Percent Health Insurance Cost Hike Or Higher Deductible,” Naples News, 11/21/11)
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