Tuesday, June 09, 2009

Saved or Created Jobs: The New DC Confidence Game


"Saved or created" has become the signature phrase for Barack Obama as he describes what his stimulus is doing for American jobs. His latest invocation came yesterday, when the president declared that the stimulus had already saved or created at least 150,000 American jobs -- and announced he was ramping up some of the stimulus spending so he could "save or create" an additional 600,000 jobs this summer. These numbers come in the context of an earlier Obama promise that his recovery plan will "save or create three to four million jobs over the next two years."...The Obama Numbers Are Pure Fiction, William McGurn, Wall Street Journal, 6/9/2009

With kudos to the White House for its new game on saving or creating jobs, here are some suggestions for you can use, emulating the administration, and improving your chances of staying employed:

Phrasing for Executive Summaries on Reports:
We earned, or did not lose, ten million dollars in the first quarter.

We saved, or did not report income for, a million dollars in taxes for 2008.

We sold, or did not lose sales of, three thousand units in the first quarter.

Go ahead and see if those work in the real economy. They're surefire. Just ask the White House and Congress. McGurn puts it much better:

In the months since Congress approved the stimulus, our economy has lost nearly 1.6 million jobs and unemployment has hit 9.4%. Invoke the magic words, however, and -- presto! -- you have the president claiming he has "saved or created" 150,000 jobs. It all makes for a much nicer spin, and helps you forget this is the same team that only a few months ago promised us that passing the stimulus would prevent unemployment from rising over 8%....(Obama Numbers...cont'd)


Luther

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