Today’s Agenda
Senator Lee meets with staff to discuss upcoming issues, including the budget and the ongoing conflict in Libya. He also has several media interviews, including PJTV, Politico, and Fox News.
From the Senator’s Desk
“Two years after the official end of the Great Recession, and one year after the Obama Administration declared “Mission: Accomplished” on the economy by celebrating the dawn of “Recovery Summer,” the United States economy remains in dire straits. And on closer inspection, the situation is even worse than the headlines suggest…What the president himself calls “Obama’s economy” and Rep. Wasserman Schultz says her party “owns” is, in fact, the worst economic recovery the American people have suffered through in a lifetime.
Highlights:
Since the start of the recession, total employment has declined 5.0%; the labor force has shrunk by 2.0 percentage points; and long-term unemployment is at 45.1%.
GDP growth (only 1.8% in the 1st quarter of 2011) has failed to keep pace with that of past recoveries.
Consumer spending, personal income, and consumer credit have all lagged significantly behind past recoveries.
The housing market remains depressed. Home prices are down 17.2% from the start of the recession, compared to an average price increase of 22.9% in past recoveries
Around the Water Cooler
Ethanol: “By cutting the ethanol break, senators have done more than many might have expected to show they are serious.”
Debt: “[B]y 2021, if nothing is done, we will owe more in debt than the size of our entire economy. The figures get worse.”
The Week Ahead: “The debt talks move to the next level this week when President Obama and Vice President Biden host the Senate leaders for separate meetings on the matter.”
A Look Ahead
Tomorrow, the Foreign Relations Committee will discuss the legality of the President’s actions with regards to Libya. The committee is expected to take a look at a resolution sponsored by Sens. Kerry and McCain that would authorize the operation for up to one year.