Since the election, the stock market has soared, consumer confidence has climbed to its highest level in 20 years, and several companies have committed to multi-billion dollar new investments in the United States. To say that America has a new spring it its step — at least for now — would be an understatement. It feels like the last joyous scene in “It’s a Wonderful Life” when George Bailey stumbles home on Christmas Eve to a house full of friends and family.
The burst of optimism has President Obama and supporters of his policies proclaiming that Obamanomics was a grand success after all. Last week the White House put out it’s annual economic report which not only restated that Mr. Obama’s stimulus bill and bailouts not only helped “stave off a second Great Depression,” but also has, as Obama put it, created “the strongest, most durable economy in the world.” His chief economist Jason Furman boasted last week: “I didn’t think I’d ever see the unemployment rate this low.”
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