Busting up DeVos single state recession myth

DETNEWS Weblog Christine Barry The Single State Recession: Another DeVos Lie "Michigan is in a single-state recession. The rest of the country is doing just fine." Amway Republican Dick DeVos needs you to believe that, but it’s just another one of his lies. According to Realtytrac, foreclosures across the US are up 63% from last year, and mortgage defaults in the first quarter of this year were up 72% over the same period in 2005. A Gallup Poll recently found that 27% of Americans are very or moderately worried about paying their housing costs. The housing market has slowed across the US. 29 states realized a decline in home sales, and national home sales in Q2 of 2006 were 7% less than in the second quarter of 2005. As of Q1 2006, the Federal Reserve reports that household debt has increased by about 11% each year since 2003. Personal savings was negative, at -$119.8 billion at the beginning of this year. The number of uninsured Americans has increased 14% since 2000**, and health care costs continue to rise. Gene Sperling, a Clinton National Economic Advisor, cites BLS (http://www.bls.gov) data that shows that real hourly wages have declined and 2.2% since the 2003 tax cut, and census data indicating that median household income has fallen every year since 2001. (Aside: things aren’t so bad for America’s corporate suits) Oh yeah, and the poverty rate has increased each year over the past 4 years. Sure, the rest of the country is “doing just fine”. Tell that to the people of Ohio, and their Republican Governor. Ohio leads the nation in job loss. (the rest of the nation isn't all that optimistic about the economy either.) That’s not to say that Michigan doesn’t have problems. 1 out of every 7 jobs in Michigan is tied to the auto industry, and auto sales react strongly to national economic conditions. Amway Dick wants you to think that the Governor is to blame for the current 7% unemployment rate, which puts us at nearly the worst in the nation. Some economists, however, say that there is little the Governor could do to influence the "economic performance of the state" , and that the economy would look the same today even if DeVos rather than Granholm had been elected four years ago. DeVos needs you to believe in the “Single State Recession”. If you aren’t blaming Granholm for a bad economy, then you might start to think about other things, like health care, public education, his business ethics, your rights to privacy and choice, separation of church & state, and more. And that would knock Amway Dick right out of the running for President Governor.