As recovery falters, Washington offers little help
By Zachary RothSigns that the economic recovery, never robust, is now in serious jeopardy have been multiplying lately. And it doesn't look like anyone in Washington has a plan that'll do anything about it.First-time claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose this week, suggesting the labor market remains weak. A new government estimate of first-quarter economic growth put it at an anemic 1.8 percent--exactly what the original estimate was, when economists had been expecting an improvement. And it's looking like the second quarter won't be a whole lot better. The economic consulting firm Macroeconomic Advisers this week projected growth over the next three months at 2.8 percent, far off the 4 percent it was predicting recently.
At this rate, it's going to be several years at best before we see healthy growth again--and the jobless rate, currently stuck at 9 percent, descending to an acceptable level.
So, what's Washington doing about it? Not much.
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Comment: Well, no surprise, I have to say. Wish I had been wrong, but it isn't so:
http://mises.org/daily/4158
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