Dems misread economy, says Biden

On Sunday while I was in Indiana, Vice President Joe Biden appeared on "This Week with George Stephanopolous," where he had the unenviable chore of defending the Obama administration's economic stimulus plan. You know, the $787 billion boondoggle that was supposed to cap unemployment at 8 percent.

We're at 9.5 percent now.

Here's what the Republican Senate blog says about Biden's statement:

VICE PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: “We Misread How Bad The Economy Was.” (ABC’s “This Week,” 7/5/09)

Administration Said Stimulus Was Needed To Prevent “Catastrophe”

PRESIDENT OBAMA: “If We Do Not Move Swiftly To Sign The American Recovery And Reinvestment Act Into Law, An Economy That Is Already In Crisis Will Be Faced With Catastrophe.” (President Obama, Remarks To House Democratic Caucus, 2/5/09)

• OBAMA: “And economists across the spectrum have warned, if we don't act immediately, then millions more jobs will disappear, the national unemployment rates will approach double digits, more people will lose their homes and their health care, and our nation will sink into a crisis that at some point is going to be that much tougher to reverse.” (President Obama, Town Hall Meeting, Fort Myers, FL, 2/10/09)

VICE PRESIDENT BIDEN: “If We Don't Do Anything, Every Economist Says We're Going To Lose 4 To 5 Million More Jobs This Year.” (“NBC’s “Today Show,” 2/25/09)

Administration Predicted The Unemployment Rate Would Not Go Above 8 Percent If The Stimulus Passed

“Just 10 Days Before Taking Office, Obama’s Top Economic Advisers Released A Report Predicting Unemployment Would Remain At 8 Percent Of Below Through This Year If An Economic Stimulus Plan Won Congressional Approval.” (“Biden Says ‘Everyone Guessed Wrong’ On Jobs Number,” The Associated Press, 6/14/09)

“The Unemployment Rate Rose In June To 9.5 Percent, Making It The Worst In 26 Years.” (“Unemployment Reaches 9.5 Percent, Highest In 26 Years,” U.S. News & World Report, 7/2/09)

The Administration Predicted The Stimulus Would Create Up To 4 Million Jobs

LARRY SUMMERS, Director Of The National Economic Council: “Yeah, The Plan Will Create 3 Million To 4 Million Jobs.” “Yeah, the plan will create 3 million to 4 million jobs more than the economy otherwise would have had, and that's before you get to the financial recovery approach.” (NBC’s “Meet The Press,” 1/25/09)

3,382,000 Jobs Have Been Lost So Far In 2009. (U.S. Dept. Of Labor, “Employment, Hour, And Earnings From The Current Employment Statistics Survey (National),” Accessed 7/6/09)

The Administration Promised “Unprecedented Responsibility” In Stimulus Spending

PRESIDENT OBAMA: “Now, what is required in return, what I will need from all of you, is unprecedented responsibility and accountability -- on all of our parts. The American people are watching. They need this plan to work. They expect to see the money that they've earned, that they've worked so hard to earn, spent in its intended purposes, without waste, without inefficiency, without fraud.” (President Obama, Remarks, Washington, D.C., 2/20/09)

VICE PRESIDENT BIDEN: “We Know Some Of This Money Is Going To Be Wasted … Some People Are Being Scammed Already.” “‘We know some of this money is going to be wasted,’ Biden said during a roundtable discussion in New York with business leaders aimed at promoting the two-year stimulus plan. … ‘There are going to be mistakes made,’ said Biden. ‘Some people are being scammed already.’” (“Biden Says Some Waste Inevitable Part Of Stimulus,” Reuters, 6/2/09)

The Dems dropped the ball on the stimulus. Are you going to trust them with health care, card check, energy...or a second stimulus.

Or a third?

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