The U.S. Economy Continues Its March Forward As The Unemployment Rate Falls

The U.S. Labor Department reported the U.S. economy created 271,000 new jobs in October, the 68th straight month of positive job growth.  The unemployment rate came in at 5% down from the 5.1% in September.  In a separate notice the Department reported that claims for unemployment insurance are near the historical lows.

The unemployment rate of 5% was the lowest since April of 2008.  When President George W. Bush left office in January of 2009 it was 7.8% which was up from the 4.2% when he took office.  The 5% rate is a dramatic turn around from what happened during the previous republican administration.  The President needs to continue to push congress to pass his proposals that will keep the economy and job creation moving forward.

This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Bush 41, Bush 43, Jeb, Cheney, Rumsfeld, The News Media And A New Book

The news media jumped on the story of a new book about former President George H. W. Bush and what he thought about two top members of his son's administration, V.P. Dick Cheney and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.  The book alleges that the elder Bush used the words iron ass, hawkish, arrogant and etc., to describe Cheney and Rumsfeld.  That Cheney had his own empire and that neither served President George W. Bush well.  As a result "W", Jeb, Cheney and Rumsfeld all came back with their rebuttal.

The news media tried to make the story some thing it was not.  In fact it was a non news story because the people and the country was exposed too and lived through the lies of President George W. Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld.  The real story is why did the elder Bush wait so long to express his anger.  Maybe, just maybe he could have prevented an unnecessary war in Iraq over WMD that did not exist had he spoken up at the time.  The fact is "W" was arrogant also but no father would ever say that about his son.

When the book comes out about the elder Bush for the public to read the people will be able to judge for themselves if the former President's words were meant to rewrite the history of his son's administration.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Another Huge, Huge First For PolitiDose

Paul Krugman, the noted Political Science Professor and Economist in a Times Picayune opinion column of 11/4/15 titled, "Economy has performed better under Democrat Presidents - but why" follows what Hillary Clinton said during the first democratic Presidential debate.  Krugman quotes a paper by economists Alan Blinder and Mark Watson comparing economic performance by democratic and republican Presidents since 1947.

Their findings were:  Under democratic Presidents the economy grew 4.35% per year and under republican Presidents it grew 2.54%.  Over the whole period the economy was in recession for 49 quarters and democrats held the White House during only 8 of those quarters.  Democrats also performed better on oil prices and technological progress.  Krugman asked why is the democratic record much better and answered, "we don't know."

But the answer can be found here in "PolitiDose" in a three part commentary plus recap titled, The U. S. Economy:  Which Party Performs Best dated 1/27/2008 seven years prior to Hillary's comment and Krugman's article.  The three part series explains why and lays it all out and goes much further and shows how democrats also control deficit spending and the national debt better than republicans, something Krugman never touched upon.

Yes, the economy indeed does better on the democratic watch, so does balanced budgets, controlling federal spending, deficit spending and the national debt.  Job creation is a democratic thing where republicans trail badly.  For related article on this commentary see Note 1 below.

And once again you read it here first in "PolitiDose" your daily dose of political commentary.


Note 1:     Job Creation for Presidential Terms  1929-2008  dated 11/5/2010
                The National Debt:  Betrayal and Devastation       dated 11/6/2009
                Federal Spending:  Facts vs. Myth                        dated 10/31/2009
               The Republican Trademark: High Oil and Gas Prices    dated 5/16/2008


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Speaker Of The U.S. House Paul Ryan: What The People Do Know About His Ideology

Paul Ryan will not allow the House to take up the issue of immigration reform until after the 2016 elections.  Ditto family leave and the minimum wage.  He wants to privatize social security and medicare.  He still wants a tax structure that benefits the wealthy and corporate America.  The same plan he put forward when he was Romney's Vice Presidential running mate in 2012.

If all of that sounds familiar its because we have had that debate already and President Obama and the democratic party has rejected that ideology.  So have the American people when they elected the President twice.  Ryan has demonstrated by his actions he believes in the conservative ideology that republicans should be allowed to run the country when they lose elections to democrats.  I would say that their understanding of democracy is warped.

Yes, time will be the factor that defines Ryan's career as speaker of the House and going in his ideology is more aligned with the tea party.  Will his opposition to President Obama's policies continue the dysfunction of the U.S. House on Ryan's watch.  Stay tuned, "PolitiDose" will offer the answers in due time.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

The Republican Presidential Candidates and The Republican Party Are In Turmoil.

The Republican Presidential debates have been a disaster three times.  After the last one they blamed CNBC, the moderators and the republican national committee.  The candidates are even talking about making their own plans for future debates.  And to top it off, Carson and Trump are still on top and going strong while the republican party's political elite are struggling.

Jeb Bush has been doing so poorly the Bush clan and their advisers met recently in Houston to try and make sense of what is taking place.  The elder President Bush does not understand the personal attacks taken place among the republican candidates and especially those about his son Jeb.  The news media in general are making wild guesses as to what is going on in the republican party.  Well, "PolitiDose" explained what is going on for all its readers some time ago.  Personal attacks by republicans against democrats is SOP for the GOP and it started with Newt Gingrich and continues this day.  But along came Donald Trump, a non politician who turned the tables on his own party by using the republican tactic to attack his republican opponents and they can not take it.  They are flat out of a response.

The elder President Bush used personal attacks against Michael Dukakis when they ran for President but now republican candidates are attacking his son Jeb and he says he does not understand.  Of course he really does.To make sense of the problem of the debates one has to know and understand the candidates and the party's ideology.You can not debate the issues when you have no record of accomplishments.  Their tax plan clearly show they still do not understand arithmetic.  The same Word that haunted Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan during the 2012 election.  Vice President Joe Biden really explained that in his debate with Ryan and Ryan had no rebuttal.  And now the republican candidates are opposing any questions from the moderators and some have suggested the likes of Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh moderate the debates.  In other words throw me some candy.

The candidates have been stung so hard by Trump they are taking it out on each other and the moderators.  One man, Donald Trump has exposed the real GOP problems and the originator was the GOP itself.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

The U.S. House Passes A Two Year Budget

The House finally passed a two year budget that will prevent a government shut down that some republicans wanted.  The vote was 266-167.  Although the republicans control the House the minority democratic vote carried the day as all democrats voted for the measure.  It was opposed by 167 republicans.  House speaker John Boehner can go out now on a positive note.

Once again "PolitiDose" was on target in a previous commentary in pointing out that meaningful legislation could have been passed by Boehner and the House with the democratic vote if Boehner would not have caved in to the tea party's extreme right wing attitude.  They could have passed immigration reform and the highway bill to repair the nations infrastructure that was passed by the democratic controlled Senate.  Those two bills were passed over two years ago by the Senate.

The U.S. Senate also passed the two year budget and the President will sign it into law.  Finally, the issue will be off the table and the people will have an opportunity to see how the U.S. House acts in the future under the new speaker Paul Ryan.  Time will tell.  Although Boehner's last act in the House was a personal triumph for himself he let the country and its people down most of his time as speaker of the House.  And that really says it all.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Walgreens Buys Out Rival Rite Aid

The largest drug store chain, Walgreens, with over 13,000 stores world wide is buying Rite Aid, the third largest drug chain world wide with over 4,000 stores for a reported $9.41 billion.  They are the first and third largest based on the number of stores operated.

The Associated Press in their report indicated the deal would allow Walgreens more buying power that would result in lower prices to Walgreens customers.  But this writer says don't bet on it and the rosy picture Walgreens is trying to paint.  History tells us this buy out is for the purpose of eliminating competition and the opportunity to control prices, especially the prices on prescription drugs.

After the buy out is finalized, Walgreens in due time will start closing some of its own stores and Rite Aid stores and laying off employees.  That is what large buy outs of other companies accomplish.  And of course the executives will make out big time.

Its the same old sad story that cost people their jobs and the extension of transferring wealth from the middle class to the wealthy.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Oil And Gas Tax Breaks Cost Louisiana's Tax Payers And The State A Bundle

The Louisiana legislative auditor said in a report that horizontal drilling for oil and gas cost the state over $1.1 billion in lost severance tax revenue due to the tax exemptions on such drilling for the years 2010 - 2014.  The report also noted Louisiana was the only state that offered a severance tax suspension for horizontal drilling.  The story was carried in a Times Picayune article of October 28.

This writer reported in a commentary long ago how the industry shifted its usual vertical drilling for natural gas where they have no exemption to horizontal drilling where they could claim the exemption.  A double wammy to the state's budget because of the actions by the state legislature.  Does any one really think the industry needs those exemptions in order to drill, produce and make a profit?  They also have the cost of doing business as deductions.

The report also said because of changes made by the legislature recently the companies may not pay any taxes at all for the next 5 years because of the low price of oil and gas.  The $8 billion of tax breaks and exemptions given business in Louisiana every year is a major reason why Louisiana and its citizens rank so low of the 50 states on the economic scale.

I wonder how many of Louisiana's uninsured could be insured with that $1.1 billion in revenue loss or how many other cuts in the budget could have been avoided.  This should be a wake up call for all Louisiana voters.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

The Third Republican Presidential Debate

Wednesday's Republican Presidential debate in Colorado hosted by CNBC was billed as a debate concerning the issues of the economy and jobs but failed the test.  The republican's answers were the same as they have been in every republican debate since President Reagan's era.  The government is too big;  too much government regulations;  national debt is too large;  tax cuts that benefit those who need them the least;  social security and medicare are bankrupt;  democrats will raise your taxes;  etc., etc., and etc.

The moderators never had a handle on the real questions that should have been asked concerning the economy and jobs, debt, balancing the federal budget and federal spending.  Why would the republicans much tried tax plan work when prior to Obama becoming President when republicans controlled the White House 20 of the previous 28 years yet during those 28 years it was President Clinton's administration who produced the best of every thing including balancing the federal budget while Reagan, Bush 41 and Bush 43 created 20 years of debt with deficit spending.

Now the republicans are running against Obama's policies that have performed much better for the country and its people than the policies of President George W. Bush who implemented and said the $1.5 trillion tax cut that was supposed to expand the economy, create jobs and balance the budget but it never happened.  In fact the worst of things happened.

The republicans only answer is tax cuts and they have failed the test every time to produce the desired results.  The worst part of the republicans rhetoric come from those candidates who are serving in congress, governors and former governors who call for balanced budgets, debt reduction, reduced federal spending and etc., but whose party has never accomplished any of those things while holding the White House in the past 50 years.  But democratic administrations have under President's Johnson, Clinton and Obama.

The republican party and its candidates will continue to run against Obama, Clinton and Sanders because they still can not articulate any real policy on the issues.  This writer understands why one moderator wanted to know where the candidates stand on "fantasy football."  It of course is not even an issue and should have never been brought up but I guess the moderator was tired of the same old worn out rhetoric of tax cuts and the elimination of government regulations as the problem solver.

CNBC's regular daily programs concern money matters such as finances, the stock market, the economy, jobs, trade and etc.  Most of their hosts endorsed the Bush tax cuts as a boom for the economy and jobs and balancing the federal budget and they were one of many who said the economy was sound when it was falling apart in 2008.  One would think their moderators would have done a better job at asking the republican candidates just how their tax cuts would work when the party's previous ones failed.  What a missed opportunity.


This commentary written by Joe Lorio

Democrat John Bel Edwards Wins First Primary In Louisiana Governor's Race

The pollsters and pundits were saying Edwards would win 29-30% of the vote in Saturday's primary.  They were wrong as democrat Edwards won 40% of the vote.  The best the runner up could do was 23% for David Vitter whose share of the vote kept shrinking during the campaign.  He was AWOL in most of the debates.

"PolitiDose" endorsed Edwards in the governor's race early on because of his leadership qualities, his background, his record of service and his willingness to discuss the policies he would pursue as governor.  The people know where JBE stands on the issues facing the state and its people.  He also ran a positive campaign and was not divisive.

Edwards also demonstrated his commitment to the state and the people Saturday night when most of the results were in.  He was thankful and spoke about his visions for the state on many issues.  It was all about the state and its people moving forward.  Vitter on his after election speech was more of the conservative rhetoric concerning President Obama and the usual divisive talk.  One would think Vitter is running for some office other than governor of Louisiana.  What a stark contrast.

In the second primary representative Edwards will need a high turn out of the democratic vote, keep the votes he won and about 10% of the republican vote that was cast in the first primary.  This writer expects Edwards to continue to run a positive campaign and be ready to handle the personal attacks and divisive issues that will surely be used by Vitter.  That is the only type of campaign he and his party can run.  They have absolutely no accomplishments to run on.  

John Bel Edwards is the only candidate in this race who is a serious public official with the political understanding to put Louisiana on a new course that is so needed after eight years of republican mis-management.  

This commentary written by Joe Lorio