White House is having a live-post party at FB. http://apps.facebook.com/whitehouse
To watch it not on FB go here: http://www.whitehouse.gov/live
Jobs Forum Discussions: Watch Locke, Romer, Wes Clark, Jeff Sachs, Genachowski, others on Biz Investment http://bit.ly/8L0F7m
Jobs Forum Discussions: Watch Chu, Browner, Wes Clark, Jeff Sachs, others on Green Jobs http://bit.ly/7GDPst
Jobs Forum Discussions: Watch Geithner, Mills, Eric Schmidt, Joseph Stiglitz, others on small business http://bit.ly/77VBFi
Jobs Forum Discussions: Watch Summers, Hochberg, Wes Clark, Paul Krugman, Larry Lindsey, others on Exports http://bit.ly/8Hp3uN
Jobs Forum Discussions: Watch LaHood, Orszag, Robert Kuttner, Doug Holtz-Eakin, others on infrastructure http://bit.ly/71Mo7o
Jobs Forum Discussions (last 1): Solis, Barnes, Dean Baker, Matthew Segal, others on Main Street Workers http://bit.ly/84RESm
Obama rejoining economic debate with jobs summit
By PHILIP ELLIOTT, Associated Press Writers Philip Elliott, Associated Press Writers – 14 mins ago
WASHINGTON – Under pressure from Republicans and a recession-weary public, President Barack Obama put the focus on jobs on Thursday by gathering local officials, economists, business and labor leaders at the White House to talk about putting people back to work.
The White House has lacked a unified economic message in recent weeks, with its attention focused instead on health care and Obama's three-month review of the Afghanistan war. With unemployment in double digits for the first time since the early 1980s, Democratic lawmakers are suggesting a second economic stimulus aimed directly at job creation may be needed.
Ahead of Obama's job forum, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Congress should use leftover money from Obama's $787 billion stimulus package, passed earlier this year, to pay for road, bridge and other public works projects and to help struggling state and local governments retain firefighters, police officers and teachers. She also promised help for small businesses.
About $140 billion in bailout money remains uncommitted and the administration has been wary of using it for other purposes. But Pelosi's comments come after administration officials have privately softened that stance.
Meanwhile, Republicans staged a jobs event of their own as a counterpoint, inviting a group of mostly conservative economists to a round-table discussion with House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, and other GOP leaders.
They included Lawrence Lindsey, a former top economic adviser to President George W. Bush and Douglas Holtz-Eakin, who had been 2008 GOP Republican nominee Sen. John McCain's top economic adviser.
"I don't think there is a moment to lose. I think we have to move aggressively toward policies that actually promote jobs. And so far what's been tried hasn't worked very well," Lindsey told the group, according to a GOP rundown. Holtz-Eakin said that the single best thing Obama could do to create jobs was "to reverse course on a dangerous agenda of debt-financed spending, crippling regulation, expensive mandates, and intrusive government expansion."
Administration officials are hoping Thursday's jobs forum, an Obama trip to Pennsylvania on Friday and a major economic speech on Tuesday will help counter Republican critics who contend the administration's economic recovery efforts have failed and its oversight of the $787 billion stimulus package has been inadequate.
At the jobs forum, Obama planned to defend his administration's handling of the economy and argue that it would be in far worse shape had Congress not passed the huge stimulus bill earlier this year. Under intense GOP attacks, public support for the stimulus effort has faded.
"I certainly hope it's more than a photo op," said the No. 2 House Republican, Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia. "All of us want to do anything we can to get Americans back to work. Past history has been, with this White House, that there's been a lot of pomp and ceremony with very little follow-through in terms of delivering results."
Administration officials said they don't expect major policy announcements from the president, Vice President Joe Biden or members of the Cabinet who were scheduled to be on hand.
"Increasing employment is everyone's responsibility, from government to businesses to households," Obama economic adviser Larry Summers said in advance of the forum. "The White House jobs forum will take stock of where we are on the implementation of the Recovery Act and explore new job creation measures, including infrastructure investment, incentives for small businesses, developing our green economy and promoting U.S. exports."
The nation's unemployment rate is 10.2 percent, the highest since 1983. Some 15.7 million Americans are out of work. The average jobless worker has been unemployed for more than six months. These sobering statistics spell potentially serious trouble for Democrats in next year's midterm elections.
The recession technically may be over, but analysts say many of the jobs lost in the downturn probably will not return and high unemployment is likely to persist.
I'm trying to embed vid of the job summit. appologies.
To watch it not on FB go here: http://www.whitehouse.gov/live
Jobs Forum Discussions: Watch Locke, Romer, Wes Clark, Jeff Sachs, Genachowski, others on Biz Investment http://bit.ly/8L0F7m
Jobs Forum Discussions: Watch Chu, Browner, Wes Clark, Jeff Sachs, others on Green Jobs http://bit.ly/7GDPst
Jobs Forum Discussions: Watch Geithner, Mills, Eric Schmidt, Joseph Stiglitz, others on small business http://bit.ly/77VBFi
Jobs Forum Discussions: Watch Summers, Hochberg, Wes Clark, Paul Krugman, Larry Lindsey, others on Exports http://bit.ly/8Hp3uN
Jobs Forum Discussions: Watch LaHood, Orszag, Robert Kuttner, Doug Holtz-Eakin, others on infrastructure http://bit.ly/71Mo7o
Jobs Forum Discussions (last 1): Solis, Barnes, Dean Baker, Matthew Segal, others on Main Street Workers http://bit.ly/84RESm
Obama rejoining economic debate with jobs summit
By PHILIP ELLIOTT, Associated Press Writers Philip Elliott, Associated Press Writers – 14 mins ago
WASHINGTON – Under pressure from Republicans and a recession-weary public, President Barack Obama put the focus on jobs on Thursday by gathering local officials, economists, business and labor leaders at the White House to talk about putting people back to work.
The White House has lacked a unified economic message in recent weeks, with its attention focused instead on health care and Obama's three-month review of the Afghanistan war. With unemployment in double digits for the first time since the early 1980s, Democratic lawmakers are suggesting a second economic stimulus aimed directly at job creation may be needed.
Ahead of Obama's job forum, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Congress should use leftover money from Obama's $787 billion stimulus package, passed earlier this year, to pay for road, bridge and other public works projects and to help struggling state and local governments retain firefighters, police officers and teachers. She also promised help for small businesses.
About $140 billion in bailout money remains uncommitted and the administration has been wary of using it for other purposes. But Pelosi's comments come after administration officials have privately softened that stance.
Meanwhile, Republicans staged a jobs event of their own as a counterpoint, inviting a group of mostly conservative economists to a round-table discussion with House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, and other GOP leaders.
They included Lawrence Lindsey, a former top economic adviser to President George W. Bush and Douglas Holtz-Eakin, who had been 2008 GOP Republican nominee Sen. John McCain's top economic adviser.
"I don't think there is a moment to lose. I think we have to move aggressively toward policies that actually promote jobs. And so far what's been tried hasn't worked very well," Lindsey told the group, according to a GOP rundown. Holtz-Eakin said that the single best thing Obama could do to create jobs was "to reverse course on a dangerous agenda of debt-financed spending, crippling regulation, expensive mandates, and intrusive government expansion."
Administration officials are hoping Thursday's jobs forum, an Obama trip to Pennsylvania on Friday and a major economic speech on Tuesday will help counter Republican critics who contend the administration's economic recovery efforts have failed and its oversight of the $787 billion stimulus package has been inadequate.
At the jobs forum, Obama planned to defend his administration's handling of the economy and argue that it would be in far worse shape had Congress not passed the huge stimulus bill earlier this year. Under intense GOP attacks, public support for the stimulus effort has faded.
"I certainly hope it's more than a photo op," said the No. 2 House Republican, Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia. "All of us want to do anything we can to get Americans back to work. Past history has been, with this White House, that there's been a lot of pomp and ceremony with very little follow-through in terms of delivering results."
Administration officials said they don't expect major policy announcements from the president, Vice President Joe Biden or members of the Cabinet who were scheduled to be on hand.
"Increasing employment is everyone's responsibility, from government to businesses to households," Obama economic adviser Larry Summers said in advance of the forum. "The White House jobs forum will take stock of where we are on the implementation of the Recovery Act and explore new job creation measures, including infrastructure investment, incentives for small businesses, developing our green economy and promoting U.S. exports."
The nation's unemployment rate is 10.2 percent, the highest since 1983. Some 15.7 million Americans are out of work. The average jobless worker has been unemployed for more than six months. These sobering statistics spell potentially serious trouble for Democrats in next year's midterm elections.
The recession technically may be over, but analysts say many of the jobs lost in the downturn probably will not return and high unemployment is likely to persist.
I'm trying to embed vid of the job summit. appologies.
Btw, Biden hammered on JOBS JOBS JOBS repeatedly.
Also, I wish I had clicked the official White House website link, because ugh, the Facebook commenters were making me rage.
FB is just making me full of rage so I left.
Now I'm watching cspan2 with HCR and the bastard repugs...From the firepan to the fire until the cool ice of Dems pop up.
They brought up the fact the repugs used to be against medicare and worked to have it die and now they are riding to its rescue.
He saying that medicare advantage is a failing program of private insurance that raising medicare costs.
60+ council.
how they wanted to privatize social security and put it in the stock market!
McCain can't commit the bill to send back out of debate to take out the 500bil from medicare advantage.
I think we did some real good.
- Ugh I almost want to switch back to watching that boring board meeting, at least the President's voice is super soothing and not shaming.
- I feel bad for staring at his name but it must've been hard to go through life with the name Crapo. Maybe that's why he's so bitter and hateful.
- Spending is bad only when it's on health. Spending on war = okay. Good to know.
- The millions of Americans that are uninsured are due to your party, dude.
I hope it comes out on youtube.
medicare advantage has been a fucking blackhole and has raised medicare costs!!!!
Each year many individuals disenroll from MA plans. A recent study noted that about 20 percent of enrollees report that 'their most important reason for leaving was due to problems getting care.'[15] There is some evidence that disabled beneficiaries 'are more likely to experience multiple problems in managed care.'[16] Some studies have reported that the older, poorer, and sicker persons have been less satisfied with the care they have received in MA plans.[17] On the other hand, an analysis of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality data published by America’s Health Insurance Plans found that Medicare Advantage enrollees spent fewer days in the hospital than Fee-for-Service enrollees, were less likely to have "potentially avoidable" admissions, and had fewer re-admissions. These comparisons adjusted for age, sex and health status using the risk score used in the Medicare Advantage risk adjustment mechanism.[18]
Twenty percent of African-American and 32 percent of Hispanic Medicare Beneficiaries were enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans in 2006. Almost half (48%) of Medicare Advantage enrollees had incomes below $20,000, including 71% of minority enrollees.[19] Others have reported that minority enrollment is not particularly above average.[20] Another study has raised questions about the quality of care received by minorities in MA plans.[21]
The Government Accountability Office reported that in 2006, the plans earned profits of 6.6 percent, had overhead (sales, etc.) of 10.1 percent, and provided 83.3 percent of the revenue dollar in medical benefits. These administrative costs are far higher than traditional fee-for-service Medicare.[22]