StimuLie
Ever since I saw this February 1 Washington Post graphic on the economic stimulus package, I knew it was designed to eliminate any linking of cause and effect. Veronique de Rugy at the American Enterprise Institute notes that the more stimulus money we’ve spent, the higher the unemployment rate has gotten.
The reaction to this news is about what you’d expect: We need a second stimulus package. This Reuters story makes that case, citing the latest Labor Department statistics showing “more than 20 percent of the jobs the country lost last month coming from the government sector.” Horrors! Left unmentioned is the fact that the unemployment rate for government workers is 4.2 percent (the rate for all workers is 9.5 percent).
With such a disparity, which jobs are being saved by the stimulus package? Teachers.
Keep all this in mind as you browse EIA’s school district enrollment, hiring and spending tables.
