Heckuva Job, Bushie…Part Deux

Two weeks ago today, I spent some time blogging about the rather bleak state of the U.S. economy. Among the economic indicators I highlighted were the following:

• Price of crude oil over $100 a barrel.
• National industrial output falls instead of increasing.
• National mortgage crisis, forcing several large finance companies to the brink of bankruptcy if not for intervention by the Fed.
• Value of the U.S. dollar at an all-time low against the Euro.

Now comes news payrolls shrunk for the third month in March, further pointing to a turn down (read, recession) of our economy. What’s more, Dennis Lockhart, the president of the Atlanta Federal Reserve, has said our economy appears to be headed towards a recession:

“It’s clear the economy is in a slowdown that resembles past periods that were the leading edge of a recession,” Lockhart told a Rotary Club meeting in Chattanooga, Tennessee. “I believe that an important policy objective at this juncture is to ensure that this slowdown is short and shallow.”

But hey, at least our mall parking lots are still full.