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[Averon]

Certain GOPers been accusing the BLS of cooking the books for months. How will they approach this report?

Edit: Such a bad report and yet the unemployment figure dropped to 8.2%? The U-6 dropped from 14.9% to 14.5?

 

[Oblivion]

Doesn't make any goddamn sense. I'll wait for the revised numbers a month from now.

It'll be even lower.

Obama should hammer the drop in unemployment rate and not bother mentioning the actual job numbers.

 

[Black Republican]

Tune in next time May 4th folks!

 

[Oblivion]

Well, this blows. I'm out for the day. Enjoy your dumb job numbers, jerkass.

 

[gcubed]

Certain GOPers been accusing the BLS of cooking the books for months. How will they approach this report?

Edit: Such a bad report and yet the unemployment figure dropped to 8.2%? The U-6 dropped from 14.9% to 14.5?

what does u6 consist of? underemployment numbers? There was a big drop in underemployment with this report (~400k)

 

[Vahagn]

Why has no one pointed out that Cantidate Obama being "against the Individual Mandate" and now supporting the Individual Mandate isn't him going more to the left, but in fact more to the right.


He was against the more centrist policy of Hilary because he was for a Single Payer or Government Option program.



Going from Single Payer / Government Option to strictly private sector individual mandate is moving from the left towards the center. The original bill proposed by Obama and Senate Democrats didn't have the individual mandate...didn't pass...and the government option was taken out and replaced with the mandate in order for the bill to get enough votes to pass...Moving from the Left closer to the Center


Peoples' stupidity on this issue is just baffling

 

[RustyNails]

There's either a mistake in BLS' report, or they skipped a week in the period. There's no way ADP and BLS were looking at the same numbers. I mean, 10 to 30k difference is fine. But how can 100k people just disappear from the BLS report? Nope, not buying it.

 

[Invisible_Insane]

There's either a mistake in BLS' report, or they skipped a week in the period. There's no way ADP and BLS were looking at the same numbers. I mean, 10 to 30k difference is fine. But how can 100k people just disappear from the BLS report? Nope, not buying it.

BLS expectations management for November. {eye roll}

 

[Tim-E]

Why has no one pointed out that Cantidate Obama being "against the Individual Mandate" and now supporting the Individual Mandate isn't him going more to the left, but in fact more to the right.

Obama got the idea to support the individual mandate from Karl Marx.

 

[Jason's Ultimatum]

Put me down for 255,555

WAY WAY off, son.

Finally PD's alt account reveals itself

And you made yourself look foolish. Oblivion was the closest.

 

[Averon]

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-brief...nds-silence-during-health-care-oral-arguments

Clarence Thomas scolds colleagues for talking too much at oral arguments

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas defended his silence during the oral arguments last week on President Obama's healthcare law and scolded his colleagues for talking too much.

“I don’t see where that advances anything,” Thomas said of peppering attorneys with questions, according to the Associated Press. “Maybe it’s the Southerner in me. Maybe it’s the introvert in me, I don’t know. I think that when somebody’s talking, somebody ought to listen.”


The George H.W. Bush-appointee said the frequent questions from his colleagues during the health care oral arguments were no longer unusual. But Thomas said the habit of frequent interruptions is unproductive.

"We have a lifetime to go back in chambers and to argue with each other,” he said. “They have 30, 40 minutes per side for cases that are important to them and to the country. They should argue. That’s a part of the process.

“I don’t like to badger people. These are not children. The court traditionally did not do that. I have been there 20 years. I see no need for all of that. Most of that is in the briefs, and there are a few questions around the edges.”

.....

 

[Door2Dawn]

You guys think Obama's poll numbers will take a hit from this jobs report?

 

[planar1280]

You guys think Obama's poll numbers will take a hit from this jobs report?

No

 

[PhoenixDark]

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-brief...nds-silence-during-health-care-oral-arguments

Clarence Thomas scolds colleagues for talking too much at oral arguments



.....

First time I've agreed with Thomas in awhile. Questions should be answered but the pace during the hearings was ridiculous at times.

 

[Gr1mLock]

Why has no one pointed out that Cantidate Obama being "against the Individual Mandate" and now supporting the Individual Mandate isn't him going more to the left, but in fact more to the right.


He was against the more centrist policy of Hilary because he was for a Single Payer or Government Option program.



Going from Single Payer / Government Option to strictly private sector individual mandate is moving from the left towards the center. The original bill proposed by Obama and Senate Democrats didn't have the individual mandate...didn't pass...and the government option was taken out and replaced with the mandate in order for the bill to get enough votes to pass...Moving from the Left closer to the Center


Peoples' stupidity on this issue is just baffling

However since the left supports it and the right hates anything the left likes (including their own ideas), he's technically moving left as well. Dat chess master!

 

[cartoon_soldier]

Employment numbers are puzzling...revision will be interesting to see.

 

[Allard]

First time I've agreed with Thomas in awhile. Questions should be answered but the pace during the hearings was ridiculous at times.

Yeah that was surprisingly well said by Thomas and I guess it does give us a better idea to why he never speaks during these hearings.

 

[DasRaven]

You guys think Obama's poll numbers will take a hit from this jobs report?

The GenPop only really takes note of the big number, not the underlying metrics. I doubt this will move the needle much in either direction.
The next big visible impact will occur if/when the number breaks back into the 7s.

 

[Jackson50]

What's odd is there was no pre-release data feeding into it. In past disappointing reports, there were generally warning signs. But the UI claims had continued to drop over last month steadily. The Fed manufacturing surveys pointed to solid growth. The manufacturing and non-manufacturing ISM readings both showed faster hiring in March. ADP showed over 200k jobs added. Usually when there's a surprise bad report there's something we can look back on and say, ah, that was the clue. This time the BLS number ran against literally everything. It is bewildering.

Diablos can take some solace in the unemployment rate falling, at least.

Edit: pointed out on twitter:

A few people have posited it's a correction from an atypically warm January and February. But I doubt the magnitude would be that considerable. The only other explanation is the effect of energy prices. Retail employment declined by over 30,000. Although, consumer confidence improved, so it's difficult to ascertain the cause. And if it is simply noise, which it could be, the cause will remain elusive.

 

[StopMakingSense]

Gallup Obama tracker back up to 50 today.

Clarence Thomas scolds colleagues for talking too much at oral arguments

Irrespective of the actual article, that is such an Onion headline.

 

[empty vessel]

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-brief...nds-silence-during-health-care-oral-arguments

Clarence Thomas scolds colleagues for talking too much at oral arguments

.....

I agree with him in the sense of judges asking questions as a kind of advocacy. But they should ask sincere questions, which means questions to clear up sincere confusion or to sincerely explore ideas.

 

[Dartastic]

Posted? I mean, I always knew it was BAD, but... WOW.

 

[markatisu]

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-brief...nds-silence-during-health-care-oral-arguments

Clarence Thomas scolds colleagues for talking too much at oral arguments

.....

This from the man who historically seems disinterested and never asks questions

I can see where he is coming from but at the same time his extreme is utterly ridiculous

 

[Flying_Phoenix]

Posted? I mean, I always knew it was BAD, but... WOW.

All that from tax cuts...

 

[Frank the Great]

i thought lawyers preferred it when judges ask a lot of questions. what's the point of going up there and summarizing the brief, at least when there are questions you have an opportunity to allay the concerns of the judges and attempt to persuade them. that's what oral argument is really for isn't it, direct pointed questions so that judges can help make up their minds. otherwise there is no point and they would be better off just reading the briefs.

thomas doesn't ask questions because he has no concerns, he knows how he is going to rule in most cases no matter what. i get what he is saying if he is referring to the judges asking too many questions, but thomas is just ridiculous with his vow of silence.

 

[Here_Try_This]

All that from tax cuts...

Yup, and the repubs keep saying "it's not a revenue problem, it's a spending problem"

 

[AlteredBeast]

Yup, and the repubs keep saying "it's not a revenue problem, it's a spending problem"

Well, spending has risen dramatically, but the breadth of the the tax cuts are causing a lot of damage. Anyone making over 50k a year should have their taxes raised, though. Taxing just the rich isn't going to do dick for anyone. Cutting Military spending down to 2001 levels would be a great start.

 

[Flying_Phoenix]

Well, spending has risen dramatically, but the breadth of the the tax cuts are causing a lot of damage. Anyone making over 50k a year should have their taxes raised, though. Taxing just the rich isn't going to do dick for anyone. Cutting Military spending down to 2001 levels would be a great start.

What kind of conservative are you? You've been spending too much time here.

 

[AlteredBeast]

What kind of conservative are you?

A traditional one.

If we can't balance the budget through spending cuts (which "conservatives" like the jackass Rick Santorum refuse to do to the biggest items), we must raise taxes. Taxes are basically the lowest they have ever been. Effective tax rates for the bottom 50% are basically the lowest they have ever been and for the top 50% they are crazy low as well. Strange that 10 years of these embarrassingly low tax rates have resulted in zero surpluses or balanced budgets...

 

[PhoenixDark]

A traditional one.

If we can't balance the budget through spending cuts (which "conservatives" like the jackass Rick Santorum refuse to do to the biggest items), we must raise taxes. Taxes are basically the lowest they have ever been. Effective tax rates for the bottom 50% are basically the lowest they have ever been and for the top 50% they are crazy low as well. Strange that 10 years of these embarrassingly low tax rates have resulted in zero surpluses or balanced budgets...

Good points. Which is why I can't see the deficit seeing any significant focus until we get a serious republican president, and the end of Tea Party influence. Not because democrats aren't serious, but because a republican would have more cover to get something done; just as Bush had more cover on immigration for instance.

 

[Dartastic]

A traditional one.

If we can't balance the budget through spending cuts (which "conservatives" like the jackass Rick Santorum refuse to do to the biggest items), we must raise taxes. Taxes are basically the lowest they have ever been. Effective tax rates for the bottom 50% are basically the lowest they have ever been and for the top 50% they are crazy low as well. Strange that 10 years of these embarrassingly low tax rates have resulted in zero surpluses or balanced budgets...

Good job for being reasonable. It boggles my mind that so many people think that taxes don't need to be raised. I don't understand how people don't understand that taxes = revenue for the government, and that's how the government raises money to spend on things.

 

[Al-ibn Kermit]

There's either a mistake in BLS' report, or they skipped a week in the period. There's no way ADP and BLS were looking at the same numbers. I mean, 10 to 30k difference is fine. But how can 100k people just disappear from the BLS report? Nope, not buying it.

I have no idea how they calculate the numbers and gather data, but maybe businesses are just retaining employees that they were planning to let go as it may be harder to hire replacements? I guess that explains why unemployment dropped.

 

[AbortedWalrusFetus]

Banks May Have Trouble Taking Full Advantage Of JOBS Act’s New Opportunities For Deceiving Clients

 

[empty vessel]

i thought lawyers preferred it when judges ask a lot of questions. what's the point of going up there and summarizing the brief, at least when there are questions you have an opportunity to allay the concerns of the judges and attempt to persuade them. that's what oral argument is really for isn't it, direct pointed questions so that judges can help make up their minds. otherwise there is no point and they would be better off just reading the briefs.

I prefer questions, because answering questions is easier than giving an oral presentation, and also for the reasons you state about an opportunity to persuade skeptical judges or clarify points of confusion. But that only works if the judges are open and their questions sincere. Otherwise, it's political/ideological grandstanding and advocacy and it doesn't do me any good to be subjected to it.

Given that Thomas isn't likely to be "open" in very many cases, it's probably for the best that he just keep quiet.

 

[Invisible_Insane]

Good points. Which is why I can't see the deficit seeing any significant focus until we get a serious republican president, and the end of Tea Party influence. Not because democrats aren't serious, but because a republican would have more cover to get something done; just as Bush had more cover on immigration for instance.

Do you think there's any hope for gridlock prevailing at the end of this year? If deficit reduction is what you want, we'll get a ton of it after the election if Congress keeps doing what it's doing.

Then again, I've been beating the "EGTRRA isn't going anywhere" drum since I started posting; I still don't really see that changing.

 

[AlteredBeast]

Do you think there's any hope for gridlock prevailing at the end of this year? If deficit reduction is what you want, we'll get a ton of it after the election if Congress keeps doing what it's doing.

Then again, I've been beating the "EGTRRA isn't going anywhere" drum since I started posting; I still don't really see that changing.

I just wish that the democratic majority hadn't passed the buck on taxes a couple years ago. Hopefully they will let them expire this time around...

 

[Invisible_Insane]

I just wish that the democratic majority hadn't passed the buck on taxes a couple years ago. Hopefully they will let them expire this time around...

They won't. Maybe out of spite if they lose in November, but I don't see it.

 

[Diablos]

So Tom Goldstein of SCOTUSblog says Obama probably isn't going to have a great June. This guy would know better than most. Does anyone really think the possibility of not only Kennedy, but Roberts, voting to uphold the mandate/law is still a possibility? Even Kennedy at this point seems like a long shot.

You see the clip of Obama saying the law was passed with a solid Democratic majority in Congress, and, well... he kind of looks like he's scrambling to sound like he argument has some teeth.

 

[PhoenixDark]

So Tom Goldstein of SCOTUSblog says Obama probably isn't going to have a great June. This guy would know better than most. Does anyone really think the possibility of not only Kennedy, but Roberts, voting to uphold the mandate/law is still a possibility? Even Kennedy at this point seems like a long shot.

You see the clip of Obama saying the law was passed with a solid Democratic majority in Congress, and, well... he kind of looks like he's scrambling to sound like he argument has some teeth.

He sounded desperate. He probably knows the initial ruling, which was probably 5-4

 

[Diablos]

He sounded desperate. He probably knows the initial ruling, which was probably 5-4

b-b-b-but early arguments and initial rulings don't always reflect the final vote!

Pretty sad that the conservatives who vow to protect our liberties just voted to have Americans strip searched for any reason (because, you know, Tim McVeigh had his explosive-laden van shoved up his ass all that time). But upholding a law that allows millions of Americans to finally have access of health care? Nah, they'll probably just throw that one out. It's a reflection of what this country has become, and it makes me sick.

 

[AlteredBeast]

He sounded desperate. He probably knows the initial ruling, which was probably 5-4

Weren't 3 of the people that voted on the bill appointed to congress? Duly elected and strong majority sound like he is trying to scramble.

 

[Black Mamba]

b-b-b-but early arguments and initial rulings don't always reflect the final vote!

Pretty sad that the conservatives who vow to protect our liberties just voted to have Americans strip searched for any reason (because, you know, Tim McVeigh had his explosive-laden van shoved up his ass all that time). But upholding a law that allows millions of Americans to finally have access of health care? Nah, they'll probably just throw that one out. It's a reflection of what this country has become, and it makes me sick.

not an accurate assessment of the case. The strip search has to do with jails and protection of inmates.

 

[Diablos]

not an accurate assessment of the case. The strip search has to do with jails and protection of inmates.

Yes, any inmate. For anything. No matter how minor the offense as I understand it.

This is ok. Detaining Americans at Gitmo is ok. But this country's highest court doesn't have the will or conviction to allow a law to stay in place to improve the well being of millions of Americans who previously did not have access to health care.

 

[AlteredBeast]

not an accurate assessment of the case. The strip search has to do with jails and protection of inmates.

Not only that, but the old health care allowed for everyone to have health insurance this bill just forces everybody to do it.

 

[Black Mamba]

Yes, any inmate. For anything. No matter how minor the offense as I understand it.

So what? Why shouldn't jailers protect the inmates?

 

[Diablos]

Not only that, but the old health care allowed for everyone to have health insurance this bill just forces everybody to do it.

And if you are too poor to afford it, the bill did a lot to expand Medicaid in order to help with that. It's not the best law, but it's a necessary step forward.

Premiums are going to skyrocket when this is struck down. Ugh.

 

[AlteredBeast]

And if you are too poor to afford it, the bill did a lot to expand Medicaid in order to help with that. It's not the best law, but it's a necessary step forward.

Premiums are going to skyrocket when this is struck down. Ugh.

Premiums have already skyrocketed. They should have just expanded Medicare coverage to everyone instead of forcing millions to pay thousands yearly to private insurers.

Medicare for all should be the focus for all respectable politicians.

 

[elrechazado]

Premiums have already skyrocketed. They should have just expanded Medicare coverage to everyone instead of forcing millions to pay thousands yearly to private insurers.

Medicare for all should be the focus for all respectable politicians.

The left should be pleased if the mandate is struck down, because it gives them a narrative to use to get what they really want, which is single payer or expanded medicare.

 

[Black Mamba]

Premiums have already skyrocketed. They should have just expanded Medicare coverage to everyone instead of forcing millions to pay thousands yearly to private insurers.

Medicare for all should be the focus for all respectable politicians.

or at leas the gov't should step in and control costs...

 

[Diablos]

Medicare for all should be the focus for all respectable politicians.

That isn't realistic right now. Otherwise that would have passed. This is the best we can do at this point in time. Maybe in another 10-20 years, but it would help to have the added safeguards present in the current law.

I have no doubt that premiums will only get worse once this is struck down. This isn't the end.