Another Stimulus Fail: Only 13,000 Private Sector Jobs Added In June

Try as they might, there is no way to put a shine on this.

US private employers added a paltry 13,000 jobs in June, compared to a revised gain of 57,000 in May, a report by a payrolls processor showed on Thursday.

The May figure was originally reported as a gain of 55,000.

The median of estimates from 30 economists surveyed by Reuters for the ADP Employer Services report, jointly developed with Macroeconomic Advisers, was for a rise of 60,000 private-sector jobs in June.

The ADP figures come ahead of the government’s much more comprehensive labor market report on Friday.

That report is expected to show a fall in nonfarm payrolls of 110,000 in June overall, as many temporary workers hired to complete the government’s decennial census were laid off.

Recovery summer!

Heartache For John Kerry: Scott Brown Most Popular Officeholder In Massachusetts

Karma’s a bitch, Lurch. 

US Senator Scott Brown, who only months ago was a little-known figure even within the tiny band of Republicans in the state Senate, not only catapulted to national stature with his upset US Senate victory, but is today the most popular officeholder in Massachusetts, according to a Boston Globe poll.

After less than five months in Washington, Brown outpolls such Democratic stalwarts as President Obama and US Senator John F. Kerry in popularity, the poll indicates. He gets high marks not only from Republicans, but even a plurality of Democrats views him favorably.

The support for Brown, whose victory became a symbol of voter anger, is consistent with widespread sentiment that incumbents in Massachusetts and Washington “need to be replaced with a new crop of leaders.’’ That statement was supported by 50 percent of those polled, while 28 percent said they trust the incumbents.

Kerry = Fredo.

Robert Byrd Dead At 92

Sen. Robert C. Byrd, who served in the Senate longer than anyone in the nation’s history, has died.

The senator’s office announced that he passed away at 3 a.m. Monday at a suburban Washington hospital.The West Virginia Democrat was 92, and was serving in an unprecedented ninth term in the U.S. Senate.

Obama’s Approval Numbers Hit New Lows In 2nd Poll In As Many Days

This time the bad news for Barry & Co. comes from an NBC/Washington Post poll released yesterday.

For the first time in the survey, more disapprove of his job performance than approve; for the first time in his presidency, more than 60 percent believe the country is on the wrong track; and as he relieves Gen. Stanley McChrystal of his command in Afghanistan, Obama’s scores on being able to handle a crisis and on being decisive have plummeted since last year.

[…]

In the poll, Obama’s job-approval rating stands at 45 percent, which is down five points from early last month and down three points from late May.

What’s more, Obama’s favorable/unfavorable rating is now at 47 percent to 40 percent, down from 49 percent to 38 percent in early May and 52 percent to 35 percent in January.

His scores on other ascpects of the presidency also have declined. In April 2009, 54 percent gave the president high marks for being able to handle a crisis; now it’s 40 percent.

In July 2009, 57 percent gave him high marks for being decisive and for his decision-making; now it’s 44 percent.

And also in July 2009, 61 percent gave him high marks for having strong leadership qualities; now it’s 49 percent.

[..]

In the survey — which was conducted after Obama’s fourth visit to the Gulf last week, after his Oval Office address on the spill, and after getting BP to agree to a $20 billion escrow account to help pay for relief — 50 percent say they disapprove of Obama’s handling of the spill, while 42 percent approve.

[…]

After last month’s disappointing jobs report (in which the economy added just 41,000 private-sector jobs), only 33 percent believe the U.S. economy will get better in the next 12 months. That is a seven-point drop since May.

In addition, 62 percent say the country is headed in the wrong direction, which is its highest point in Obama’s presidency.

[…]

The Republican Party has a major advantage in the fall, and this poll just reconfirms that,” Hart said.

Moreover, 32 percent say their vote this November will be a signal of opposition for Obama, versus 27 percent who say it will be a signal of support for him. That’s a reversal from January, when 37 percent said their vote would be in support for the president, while 27 percent said it would be in opposition.

All signs lead to a bloodbath for the Democrats this fall.

Breaking: Federal Judge Blocks Obama’s Job-Killing Offshore Drilling Moratorium

An already bad day gets much worse for Barry & Co.

Gulf Coast business owners sued, saying the moratorium may be a bigger threat to their livelihoods than the oil spill itself.

U.S. District Judge Martin Feldman, based in New Orleans, called the moratorium too arbitrary.

“An invalid agency decision to suspend drilling of wells in depths of over 500 feet simply cannot justify the immeasurable effect on the plaintiffs, the local economy, the Gulf region and the critical present-day aspect of the availability of domestic energy in this country,” Feldman wrote in his opinion.

Dough Boy Gibbs says they will appeal the judge’s decision…ensuring they will never win an election in the Gulf Coast region.

CBS/NYT Poll: Majority Of Americans Think Obama Is Clueless On Jobs, Oil Spill & Energy

Keep in mind this is a CBS/New York Times poll – not exactly known for their conservative leaning samples.

Most Americans do not believe President Obama has a clear plan to deal with the oil spill in the Gulf, according to a new CBS News/New York Times poll.

Just 32 percent say Mr. Obama has a clear plan to deal with the oil leak, while 59 percent (including 64 percent of Gulf coast residents) say he does not.

The numbers are not much better among those who watched the president’s Oval Office speech on the spill last week, with 35 percent of that group saying he has a clear plan and 56 percent saying he does not.

The spill isn’t the only issue on which the president is seen as lacking a plan of action: Just 41 percent say Mr. Obama has a clear plan for developing new sources of energy, while 45 percent say he has no clear plan. And when it comes to creating jobs, just 34 percent say he has a clear plan; 54 percent say he does not.

A majority of Americans – 61 percent – says the president’s response to the oil spill was too slow. Just 31 percent say they have “a lot” of confidence in his ability to handle a crisis, though a majority has at least some confidence that he can do so. Since January, the percentage who says Mr. Obama has strong qualities of leadership has fallen from 70 percent to 62 percent.

Overall, 43 percent approve of Mr. Obama’s handling of the oil spill, while 47 percent disapprove.

But the most devastating numbers (and the most alarming for the White House) are the right track/wrong track results which are not featured in either the cbs.com on-line or New York Times stories on the poll results.

60% think the country is headed in the wrong direction while only 32% think the country is headed in the right direction.

I can’t wait until November.

John Kerry Turning Off His Dem Colleagues With Climate Bill Push

You know it’s getting bad for Lurch when members of his own party are getting creeped out by his obsession with passing Cap & Tax. 

Kerry’s style, said Sen. John Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), is akin to being “pursued by a suitor, just as boys pursue girls.”

Rockefeller, who last week called on the Senate to ignore carbon limits, declined to say whether Kerry is the Democrats’ best messenger on climate, saying it was “sort of too direct a question” to answer.

“Well, he’s certainly a constant,” Rockefeller said. “The question is whether that’s good.”

“He’s so obsessed,” said one wavering Democratic senator who has been pursued by Kerry. “Clearly, it’s all climate, all the time with him.”

Kerry is well aware that his tactics may have turned off some of his colleagues.

“No one pretends this has been an easy issue,” he told POLITICO. “It’s been contentious for the 20 years we’ve been trying to pass a bill. Have I worked aggressively? Absolutely. But I’ve also listened hard.”

Easy for him to say when he is not running for reelection for years.  As for listening hard, read on. 

But Thursday’s climate-focused Democratic Caucus meeting left some senators grumbling that Kerry talked too much and didn’t listen enough. Although Kerry opened his presentation with Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) by apologizing for being so aggressive on the issue and explaining how important he thinks it is, he then went on to speak much longer than either New Mexico Sen. Jeff Bingaman or Washington Sen. Maria Cantwell, the two other presenters at the meeting.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) had to postpone the discussion for another meeting this week.

That ought to win them over, Lurch.

Obama Takes Time Out From Golfing To Attend Nationals Game

I’d like to know who is advising Obama these days.  Golf, Barbara Boxer fundraisers, “Hey Jude” sing-alongs, Beyonce and now baseball – all while the Gulf Coast is literally dying and lives are being destroyed.

Captain Kickass only likes to play president.

Nutty Professor Charged In Brother’s 1986 Shooting Death

Twenty-four years and three additional dead bodies later, Amy Bishop has been indicted in the 1986 shooting death of her brother, Seth.

(photo credit boston.com)

CANTON – A biology professor charged with killing three of her colleagues at an Alabama university has been indicted in the 1986 shooting death of her brother in Massachusetts.

Norfolk District Attorney William Keating announced Wednesday that Amy Bishop had been charged with first-degree murder in the death of her 18-year-old brother, Seth.

Authorities had originally ruled her brother’s shooting an accident. But they reopened the case after Bishop was charged in February with gunning down six of her colleagues at the University of Alabama-Huntsville, killing three.

Imagine how the families of Bishop’s latest victims feel knowing that in 1986 there was sufficient evidence to indict her and almsot certainly would have prevented the murders of their loved ones.

Epic Fail. Obama’s Oval Office Speech Savaged By…Left?!?!

The screaming headline at The Huffington Post says it all.  I think it’s safe to say that Barry & Co. never imagined they would wake up to the words “JUNK SHOT” in response to The One’s first Oval Office speech.  The words that follow are just as harsh:

Reviews of the speech were harsh. Environmental reporter Kate Sheppard of Mother Jones wrote:

On the Gulf disaster, Obama could have offered clear direction on several issues: for instance, by clarifying the administration’s stance on eliminating the liability cap to protect oil companies from damages following a spill, or by offering a hard number for how much money BP must set aside for the independently administered fund the government has proposed.
Then there are the questions about wider energy and climate policy that remain unanswered. Obama largely avoided the issue of climate change, only uttering the word “climate” once as part of the phrase “a strong and comprehensive energy and climate bill.” He at least hit the right notes on clean energy, talking about solar power, wind, efficiency, and electric cars, an improvement over his State of the Union address this year, where nuclear power, “clean” coal, and offshore drilling figured heavily. But what his speech lacked was specific directives, which is what the Senate needs at this point. There wasn’t even a clear call for a carbon cap, which I fear all but dooms its chances this year.

Similarly, the Washington Post’s Ezra Klein noted the “pessimistic take” on Obama’s vague language about an energy bill was that the president “shied away from clearly describing the problem, did not endorse specific legislation, did not set benchmarks, and chose poll-tested language rather than a sharper case that might persuade skeptics.”

MSNBC personalities Keith Olbermann, Chris Matthews, and Howard Fineman were particularly disappointed. “It was a great speech if you were on another planet for the last 57 days,” Olbermann said, adding, “Nothing specific at all was said… I don’t think he aimed low, I don’t think he aimed at all. It’s startling to have heard this, isn’t it?” Fineman agreed: “He wasn’t specific enough,” and failed to lead as a “commander-in-chief” should.

There is a link to the MSNBC video.  I highly recommend it.  I’m a sucker for punishment and watched the Keith & Chris smackdown after the speech and had to lift my jaw off the floor at their comments delivered with such snark.