Whitehouse.gov: "We appreciate your patience while we make some improvements."

The White House isn't actually referring to today's terrible jobs report but the shoe fits perfectly. The word from whitehouse.gov:

Our apologies.

Not accepted.

The site is currently undergoing maintenance. We appreciate your patience while we make some improvements. Please check back soon.

Like in NOVEMBER. (H/t: JP on Twitter)

James Pethokoukis:

This continues to be the longest streak — 41 months — of unemployment of 8% or higher since the Great Depression. And recall that back in 2009, Team Obama predicted that if Congress passed its $800 billion stimulus plan, the unemployment rate would be around 5.6% today.

Just 75,000 jobs were created, on average, per month in the second quarter vs. 226,000 in the first quarter. And for the year, monthly job creation has averaged just 150,000 vs. 153,000 last year. Both numbers are extremely weak.

But those top-line numbers actually overstate the health of the labor market.

– If the size of the U.S. labor force as a share of the total population was the same as it was when Barack Obama took office—65.7% then vs. 63.8% today—the U-3 unemployment rate would be 10.9%. Even if you take into account that the LFP should be declining as America ages, the unemployment rate would be 10.5%.

Read the rest.

Ed Morrissey:

Update II: This is a good time to remind people of the implications of Barack Obama’s immigration policy change this month.  The pledge to issue work permits means that we may potentially add 1.2 million workers to the workforce over the next two years.  That means we will have to add jobs at a rate closer to 200,000 per month just to keep up with population growth and the policy change.

Update III: The AP article also reports that one-third of the job gain came from temp hires.  That may or may not be a bad thing; temp hires usually presage some expansion, but that’s something you want to see more toward the beginning of a recovery than three years into it.  At this stage, and with these low overall numbers, it looks a lot more like bet-hedging.

One-third are temporary jobs? Oy. Maybe Joe Biden and Henry Waxman are right for once.

Meanwhile, the Candidate-in-Chief and his magic bus hit the road. I'm not sure what's harder to watch than a cocky Obama doing his usual campaign shtick: telling lies, making embarrassingly stupid remarks, and embracing his abjectly grateful subjects. Nauseating.

Headline of the Day from Bryan Preston: Sobbing Woman Touches the Hem of Obama’s Garment, Thanks Him for the Healing Power of ObamaTax

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2nd Headline of the Day comes from Mollie Hemingway: Just Imagine The Mess Obama Will Inherit If He's Reelected!

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