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The Spectacle Blog
Vice President Joe Biden said on a Monday conference call with reporters that it was “above [his] pay grade” to explain in detail the methodology the White House uses to estimate the number of jobs created or saved by the economic stimulus legislation, but stressed that there had been no “reasonable” challenges to the estimates.
During the call, Biden said that the stimulus package, which was signed into law in February, saved or created 150,000 in its first 100 days, and he outlined White House plans to accelerate the pace so that 600,000 more jobs will be saved or created in the second 100 days this summer.
Asked by Jonathan Riskind of the Columbus Dispatch to explain how the White House determined these numbers, Biden said that the Council of Economic Advisers makes its estimates based on measuring what the U.S. employment level would have been without the stimulus, and then comparing it to the nation’s actual employment level.
“I’m sorry I’m not an economist,” Biden said as he was describing the methodology. “My background is foreign policy and the constitution. “
The White House estimates also consider the number of jobs needed to complete certain projects funded by the stimulus, and take into account the “spinoff effects” of spending programs. For instance, tax credits and subsidies for weatherization of homes and wind farms boost contracts for businesses that may not be receiving stimulus money directly, the vice president, who is spearheading the implementation of the program, said.
“I’m a little above my pay grade here as I try to explain in more detail how they count spinoff effects of actual jobs created, “ Biden said.
“It’s complicated,” he acknowledged. “But the fact is that there has been no challenge to the methodology the Council of Economic Advisers has come up with, known to national economists as being reasonable to the estimates we have as to the actual jobs saved or created.”
Later in the call, he said that while it was hard to take solace in the fact that the unemployment rate has increased to 9.4 percent, Biden insisted it would have been worse without the stimulus legislation.
“There’s no doubt that the unemployment rate would be considerably higher than it is now,” he said. “The estimates range from we would have lost … one million to four million additional jobs depending on whose model you look at, were it not for the Recovery Act.”
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More Blog Posts by Philip Klein
http://spectator.org/blog/2009/06/08/biden-im-sorry-im-not-an-econo
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Trackback| 6.8.09 @ 6:45PM
The American Spectator : Biden: "I'm Sorry I'm Not an Economist", on PunditKix, links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
rob| 6.8.09 @ 11:56PM
Biden's pay grade should be in the negative figures, considering how dumb he is.
Obushma| 6.9.09 @ 12:08AM
Methinks Vice-president is a little above his pay grade too.
Faffnir| 6.9.09 @ 7:01AM
"Village Idiot" is above Joe's pay grade.
Ron Kelderman| 6.9.09 @ 7:29AM
Give poor Joe a break. He has spent 30 years riding the train back and forth to Washington, DC. In the 30 years of being in Washington no one told Joe that maybe it would be a good idea to learn about the economy before voting on bills in the senate. This really shows us that anyone that has been in office for more than one term should be voted out of office because they are all making bills into laws that are above their pay grade.
Jay| 6.9.09 @ 7:57AM
I for one am glad we have JO-bide as VP. I loved the wonderfully stupid things Spiro Agnew used to say and Jo-bide out does Spiro every time.
Every Saturday JO-bide tells us he has breakfast at a restaurant that has been closed for 30 years. "That's where I listen to the public."
JO-bide tells the crippled to walk and admits he knows nothing about finances or business. He is a man of great modesty and, truly, he has much to be modest about.
Dean| 6.9.09 @ 8:23AM
“I’m a little above my pay grade here as I try to explain in more detail how they count spinoff effects of actual jobs created, “ Biden said.
Seems like this is the at-the-ready excuse for the administration for any difficult question they face. As citizens we must be paying them about 4 bucks an hour because everything seems to be above their pay grade.
Bill| 6.9.09 @ 9:01AM
I am shocked! Shocked I tell you! We have actually elected a couple of "village idiots" to run the executive branch. How is that possible? Oh, wait a minute. We did that with the congress too! And now I see that we may actually be getting ready to allow that bunch of morons do the same to the judicial branch. Oh my, it seems that the REAL idiots is us Pogo ....
russ| 6.9.09 @ 9:16AM
GOD help us our country is headed in the toilet with these idiots in charge
russ| 6.9.09 @ 9:16AM
GOD help us our country is headed in the toilet with these idiots in charge
Bill| 6.9.09 @ 9:26AM
The majority must be taken away from these clowns in 2010. The clowns themselves must be removed in 2012. And the full reversal of their crap initiated immediately thereafter...... That is, if we truly want to save this Republic!
2Anglico| 6.9.09 @ 9:39AM
I thought he said "I'm a sorry economist".
Pingback| 6.9.09 @ 9:52AM
Biden wont defend someone else’s fictitious stories; claims economy is above his pay links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
mike ryan| 6.9.09 @ 10:10AM
why won't someone in the press ask for the documents and methodology behind these numbers??? c'mon, if this is defensible the administration would be defending it by publishing the numbers. either it doesn't exist or the analysis of the group doesn't support the claims. in other words, the claims of obama and biden are bogus. or to put it another way, they are LYING. when is the press going to get off its knees and actually do some reporting?
mike ryan| 6.9.09 @ 10:21AM
an additional thought. if, without the stimulus, we would have lost 1-4 million more jobs, why was the administration selling the stimulus by stating, with it, the unemployment rate would get no higher than 8%? this makes no sense and shows obama and biden are making it up as they go along and the msm is more than happy to play along. of course, they were dead wrong in this prediction (probably because it was made up too) just as they are in the jobs "saved or created".
Bill| 6.9.09 @ 10:36AM
The "saved or created" scam is used throughout the executive branch to provide some sort of metric showing outcomes for virtually all federal programs administered by the executive branch. But oversight is exercised by congress thru its committees & they want to tell their folks back home how much they've done to improve their sorry lot. Hence the pressure to come up with "jobs" data. If your company hasn't terminated you, your job was "saved". If you were just hired, your job was "created". True enough, and fully verifiable but the rub is in claiming that a particular federal program is the reason for either. Look at it this way, if you own a business you'll wait 'till your back is against the wall & you can't get stuff out door before you'll hire more people. And even then you'll do it "on the cheap" with temps & teens & the like. Jobs (whether saved or created) is always a lagging indicator. Not seen sometimes for years AFTER things turnaround! Improving job prospects in a few months? You're kidding right? Give me a break!
Big Dog | 6.9.09 @ 11:43AM
There is no way to measure jobs saved. The WSJ has a great editorial about this. It is great politics but means nothing.
Having said that, I saved 150,000 jobs today.
http://www.onebigdog.net/i-saved-150000-jobs/
Bill| 6.9.09 @ 1:07PM
Yeah, like I said: it's a scam. But the vast majority of the "unwashed" & uninformed will accept it as truth. For them, to consider the alternative would be too painful.
CC Ryder| 6.9.09 @ 6:32PM
Just wait till the unwashed and uninformed get smacked by the big taxes that are coming their way--talk about painful. Too damned bad.
Pingback| 6.10.09 @ 3:06PM
Biden-izms - SailNet Community links to this page.
Pingback| 6.10.09 @ 5:10PM
Hot Air » Blog Archive » Porkulus above the pay grade of its chief? links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
Pingback| 6.10.09 @ 6:26PM
Biden Admits To Not Having A Clue links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
Pingback| 6.10.09 @ 8:32PM
Biden Says Determining Created Or Saved Jobs Is Above His Pay Grade « Infidels Paradi links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
Pingback| 6.11.09 @ 12:08PM
Health Care Huckster | America Watches Obama links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
Trialdog| 6.11.09 @ 2:40PM
I find it sad that Joe is being used this way. Sure, he's a great distraction for Obama but I think it cruel to allow Ol' Joe to wander out in public and make a fool of himself. Is it elder abuse to shelter yourself by holding up a daft old man to be ridiculed? "Don't look at me, laugh at this old freak."
Pingback| 7.7.09 @ 5:24PM
say it ain’t so joe! « Daily Double Standard links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
Pingback| 7.14.09 @ 8:41AM
Has the ‘Stimulus’ Stopped ‘Creating or Saving’ Jobs? - Jeff_Emanuel’s blog - RedSta links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
Pingback| 7.14.09 @ 8:41AM
Has the ‘Stimulus’ Stopped ‘Creating or Saving’ Jobs? - Jeff_Emanuel’s blog - RedSta links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
Pingback| 7.14.09 @ 8:35PM
http://jeffemanuel.net/2009/07/has-the-stimulus-stopped-creating-or-saving-jobs/ links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
Pingback| 7.26.09 @ 7:24PM
Dirty Democrats » Has the ‘Stimulus’ Stopped ‘Creating or Saving’ Jobs? links to this page. Here’s an excerpt:
pricila| 4.24.10 @ 9:00AM
Don't give up on the Northeast just yet Ken, there's still some Patriots left up there, they're just a bit hard to find is all. faxes
jane| 4.28.10 @ 6:25AM
“I’m a little above my pay grade here as I try to explain in more detail how they count spinoff effects of actual jobs created, “ Biden said. online driver scanner