Jobs 

Public Pessimism About the Economy Grows:  On September 20, 2011, the USA Today reported, “Americans' pessimism about the economy and its future is deepening, a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll finds, and they are increasingly willing to hold President Obama responsible for hard times.  Eight of 10 say the economy is in a recession, and nearly as many say it hasn't improved over the past year.  Even more ominous: Six in 10 predict the economy a year from now will be the same or worse than today, a downturn from the public's views last year and the year before.”

Spending

While Federal Budgets Explode, Family Budgets Shrink:  This week, the U.S. Census Bureau released its report on income and poverty in America in 2010.   As the new Census data shows, the Obama Administration’s spending binge may be a boon for the federal government, but it has been a bust for struggling America.  Inflation adjusted median household income dropped to its lowest level since 1996.  Since 2007, inflation adjusted median household income fell by $3,400 or 6.4 percent.  Over the same period of time, federal spending grew by $727 billion or 26 percent.

Medicare

Medicare Missing Modern Economics:  In a recent essay, Yuval Levin, a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center and editor of National Affairs, suggests “If Medicare is going to shape the economics of health care, it should at least do so in a way that comports with modern economics​—​creating efficiency through consumer pressure, competition, and innovation, not through central planning and price controls.”