The AP is carrying a story, today (July 2), that is the forebearer of continuing bad news. In January of this year, there was the hope and the claim that the economy was growing after four years of very poor performance. GDP was announced as being 2.2% and the monthly "jobs created" report was at 230,000. Today, six months later, jobs creation has fallen to 60,000 per month, not enough to keep up with population growth; GDP, touted to be 2.2%, has been adjusted downward for the first half of the year, to a miserable 1% - a number that puts the nation in the beginnings of a true and second recession.
And things are not looking good for the near future. Manufacturing numbers came out today, and they are at a three year low. Driving this downward trend are "new orders" as a measure of consumer confidence, fell to a shocking 10 year low.
Let's not forget that admitted unemployment rose from 8.1 to 8.2 percent, last month. No modern day sitting president has been re-elected with such numbers.