EDITED: Mitt Romney never met a flip-flop lie he didn’t love!

ROMNEY CLAIM

TRUTH

ROMNEY:  “[PRESIDENT OBAMA] SAID THAT IF WE LET HIM BORROW $787 BILLION, HE WOULD HOLD UNEMPLOYMENT BELOW 8%.”

REALITY: INDEPENDENT FACT CHECKERS HAVE REPEATEDLY DEBUNKED THE CLAIM THAT THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION PROMISED THE RECOVERY ACT WOULD KEEP UNEMPLOYMENT BELOW 8 PERCENT

PolitiFact “Could Find No Evidence Of Anyone In The Administration Making A Public Pledge That The Stimulus Would Keep The Unemployment Rate Below 8 Percent.” “Obama warned upon taking office that if “dramatic action” were not taken, “the unemployment rate could reach double digits,” with the recession lasting for years. But PolitiFact could find no evidence of anyone in the administration making a public pledge that the stimulus would keep the unemployment rate below 8 percent.” [PolitiFact, 10/13/2011]

Ø  PolitiFact Has Reviewed This Claim Multiple Times And Has Called It “Mostly False” In Each Case. “PolitiFact National and its state affiliates have debunked similar claims several times before,starting with U.S. Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Virginia) in July 2009. More recently, Romney faced the Truth-O-Meter for repeating that statement earlier this month after winning the Nevada caucuses. Each time, the claim has received a Mostly False.” [PolitiFact, 2/27/2012]

Associated Press: “Obama Never Said That He Would Hold Unemployment Below 8 Percent If Congress Adopted His Stimulus Package.” “ROMNEY: “The administration pledged that their stimulus would keep the unemployment rate below 8 percent. It has been above 8 percent every month since.” THE FACTS: Obama never said that he would hold unemployment below 8 percent if Congress adopted his stimulus package.” [Associated Press, 4/5/2012]

ROMNEY: PRESIDENT OBAMA “HAS NOT CREATED MORE JOBS FOR THE AMERICAN PEOPLE”

REALITY: THE ECONOMY WAS LOSING 750,000 JOBS A MONTH WHEN PRESIDENT OBAMA TOOK OFFICE, AND IN THE LAST 25 MONTHS THE ECONOMY HAS ADDED MORE THAN 4 MILLION PRIVATE SECTOR JOBS

When President Obama Took Office, The Economy Was Losing 750,000 Private Sector Jobs Per Month. According to Bureau Of Labor Statistics data, between December 2008 and March 2009 the economy lost an average of 752,000 private sector jobs per month: December 2008 (-658,000), January 2009 (-839,000), February 2009 (-725,000), March 2009 (-787,000). [data.bls.gov, accessed 4/19/2012]

The U.S. Economy Has Added More Than 4 Million Private Sector Jobs In The Last 25 Months. In February 2010, the U.S. economy employed 106,773,000 people. In March 2012, the U.S. economy employed 110,824,000 people. [data.bls.gov, accessed 4/6/2012]

Ø  Private Sector Job Growth Has Continued For 25 Consecutive Months. [data.bls.gov, accessed 4/6/2012]

IN THE CURRENT RECOVERY, THE ECONOMY HAS ADDED 7 TIMES, OR NEARLY 2.5 MILLION MORE, PRIVATE SECTOR JOBS THAN DURING THE 2000-2001 RECOVERY

Over The Last 33 Months Of The Current Recovery, From June 2009 Through March 2012, The U.S. Economy Has Added 2,891,000 Private Sector Jobs. In June 2009, the U.S. economy employed 107,933,000 people in the private sector. In March 2012, the U.S. economy employed 110,824,000 people in the private sector. [data.bls.gov, accessed 4/13/2012]

Over The 33 Months Following 2000-2001 Recession, From November 2001 Through August 2004, The U.S. Economy Added 412,000 Private Sector Jobs. In November 2001, the U.S. economy employed 109, 572,000 people in the private sector. In August 2004, the U.S. economy employed 109,984,000 people in the private sector. [data.bls.gov, accessed 4/13/2012]

ROMNEY: “THE NUMBER OF NEW BUSINESSES STARTED PER YEAR IS DOWN 100,000 A YEAR UNDER THE OBAMA TERM.”

REALITY: IN 2011, MORE THAN 540,000 NEW BUSINESSES WERE STARTED EACH MONTH, MORE THAN 5 PERCENT ABOVE PRE-RECESSION LEVELS

The Entrepreneurship Rate Is More Than 5 Percent Higher Than Pre-Recession Levels.   According to the Kauffman Index of Entrepreneurial Activity, “Although the entrepreneurship rate declined in 2011, it remained more than 5 percent higher than before the recession started. Over the past decade and a half, the business creation rate fluctuated within the range of 0.27 percent to 0.31 percent, but then rose above this level in the past four years.” [Kauffman Index of Entrepreneurial Activity, March 2012]

Ø  In 2011, 0.32 Percent Of The Adult Population Created New Businesses Each Month, Equaling About 543,000 New Businesses Created Each Month.  “In 2011, an average of 0.32 percent of the adult population, or 320 out of 100,000 adults, created a new business each month. This business-creation rate translates into approximately 543,000 new businesses being created each month during the year.” [Kauffman Index of Entrepreneurial Activity, March 2012]

ROMNEY: “DID YOU KNOW, BY THE WAY, THAT OF ALL THE JOBS LOST DURING THE OBAMA YEARS, 93% WERE LOST BY WOMEN? 93% WERE LOST BY WOMEN.”

REALITY: ROMNEY’S CLAIM ABOUT EMPLOYMENT AMONG WOMEN UNDER PRESIDENT OBAMA HAS BEEN DEBUNKED BY INDEPENDENT FACT CHECKERS AND ECONOMIC EXPERTS AS “DUBIOUS,” “SKEWED,” AND “MOSTLY FALSE”

Politifact:  The Romney Campaign’s Claim About Employment Among Women Under President Obama “Ignores Critical Facts That Would Give A Different Impression. We Rate It Mostly False.” [PolitiFact, 4/11/2012]

Associated Press: “As A Meaningful Measure Of Obama’s Economic Record And Its Effect On Women” Romney’s Claim That 92.3 Percent Of All Jobs Lost During The Obama Years Have Been Lost By Women Is “Is Dubious At Best.” “Mitt Romney has come up with an “amazing statistic” and Republicans inside and outside his presidential campaign are doing their utmost to spread it around: ‘92.3 percent of all the jobs lost during the Obama years have been lost by women.’ Amazing it may be. As a meaningful measure of Obama’s economic record and its effect on women, though, it is dubious at best.  [Associated Press, 4/12/2012]

ROMNEY: “PRESIDENT OBAMA’S FAILED ECONOMIC POLICIES HAVE LED TO MORE REGULATIONS”

REALITY: PRESIDENT OBAMA REDUCED REGULATORY BURDENS WHILE APPROVING FEWER REGULATIONS THROUGH HIS FIRST THREE YEARS THAN PRESIDENT BUSH DID

President Obama Approved Nearly 5 Percent Fewer Regulations During The First Three Years In Office Than Did His Predecessor, George W. Bush. “Obama’s White House approved 613 federal rules during the first 33 months of his term, 4.7 percent fewer than the 643 cleared by President George W. Bush’s administration in the same time frame, according to an Office of Management and Budget statistical database reviewed by Bloomberg.” [Bloomberg, 10/26/11]

President Obama Issued A Memorandum Directing Agencies To Not Place Unjustified Burdens On Small Business Owners. “Accordingly, I hereby direct executive departments and agencies and request independent agencies, when initiating rulemaking that will have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities, to give serious consideration to whether and how it is appropriate, consistent with law and regulatory objectives, to reduce regulatory burdens on small businesses, through increased flexibility. … Adherence to these requirements is designed to ensure that regulatory actions do not place unjustified economic burdens on small business owners and other small entities.” [Presidential Memoranda – Regulatory Flexibility, Small Business, and Job Creation, 1/18/11]

President Obama Signed An Executive Order Requiring Agencies To Develop Regulatory Lookback Tools To Eliminate Regulations That Are Ineffective Or Burdensome. “Our regulatory system must protect public health, welfare, safety, and our environment while promoting economic growth, innovation, competitiveness, and job creation. It must be based on the best available science. It must allow for public participation and an open exchange of ideas. It must promote predictability and reduce uncertainty. It must identify and use the best, most innovative, and least burdensome tools for achieving regulatory ends. It must take into account benefits and costs, both quantitative and qualitative. It must ensure that regulations are accessible, consistent, written in plain language, and easy to understand. It must measure, and seek to improve, the actual results of regulatory requirements.” [Executive Order 13563, 1/21/11]

REALITY: PRESIDENT OBAMA INITIATED A REGULATORY OVERHAUL TO SAVE BUSINESSES BILLIONS

President Obama Initiated An Overhaul Of The Regulatory System Which Will Roll Back Hundreds Of Burdensome Regulations, Saving Businesses $10 Billion In The Next Five Years. “Months of work aimed at slashing red tape imposed by agencies across the federal government are culminating Tuesday as the Obama administration releases its final regulatory reform plans that officials say will save businesses $10 billion over five years.” [Politico, 8/23/11]

Ø  The Overhaul Resulted In More Than 500 Regulatory Reforms From 26 Different Agencies. “Seven months after receiving an executive order to cut red tape, federal agencies today released their final plans for cutting burdensome regulations, unveiling hundreds of changes that are estimated to save billions of dollars and millions of hours of paperwork in the coming years. Following a public comment period that ended earlier this summer, 26 agencies released their final reports today outlining some 500-plus reforms. White House regulatory czar Cass Sunstein wrote in an editorial in The Wall Street Journal today that a dozen of the most far-reaching changes are estimated to save businesses some $10 billion over the next five years.” [New York Times Green Blog, 8/23/11]

Under President Obama, The IRS Has Made Changes Saving Taxpayers 55 Million Annual Hours In Tax Reporting And Paperwork Burdens. “The simpler warnings required by Labor are expected to save employers more than $2.5 billion over the next five years, according to administration projections. The streamlined tax forms of the IRS will save businesses an estimated 55 million staff hours in paperwork.” [LA Times, 8/24/11]

ROMNEY: “IF [PRESIDENT OBAMA] REMAINS PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, YOU’RE GOING TO SEE MORE TRILLION-DOLLAR DEFICITS PILING UP AND PILING UP”

REALITY: PRESIDENT OBAMA’S BUDGET WOULD CUT THE DEFICIT BY MORE THAN $4 TRILLION OVER THE NEXT DECADE

February 2012: The President’s Budget, Incorporating Deficit Reduction Enacted In 2011, Would Cut The Deficit By More Than $4 Trillion Over The Next Decade. “That is why in this Budget, the President again has put forward a plan that will, together with the deficit reduction enacted last year, cut the deficit by more than $4 trillion over the next decade. This would put our Nation on the right course toward a level of deficits of below 3 percent of GDP by the end of the decade.” [FY2013 Budget, White House Office Of Management And Budget, p.2, February 2012]

Ø  President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2013 Budget Calls For $4 Trillion In Deficit Reduction. [LA Times, 2/10/12]

ROMNEY: “IT’S SERVICEMEN AND WOMEN COMING HOME FROM CONFLICT TO A WELCOMING NATION BUT A VERY INHOSPITABLE JOB MARKET.”

REALITY: PRESIDENT OBAMA HAS HELPED VETERANS, INCLUDING DISABLED VETERANS, FIND WORK AND TRANSITION TO CIVILIAN LIFE

President Obama Campaigned For And Signed The VOW to Hire Heroes Act. “In August, President Obama called on Congress to enact tax credits that will help get veterans back to work. The Returning Heroes Tax Credit provides businesses that hire unemployed veterans with a maximum credit of $5,600 per veteran, and the Wounded Warriors Tax Credit offers businesses that hire veterans with service-connected disabilities with a maximum credit of $9,600 per veteran.” [White House, 11/21/11]

Ø  A Returning Heroes Tax Credit Of Up To $5,600 Per Veteran For Businesses That Hire Veterans Who Have Been Unemployed For Six Months Or Longer. “The Returning Heroes Tax Credit is a new hiring tax credit that will provide an incentive for businesses to hire unemployed veterans. Short-term unemployed: A new credit of 40 percent of the first $6,000 of wages (up to $2,400) for employers who hire veterans who have been unemployed at least 4 weeks; Long-term unemployed: A new credit of 40 percent of the first $14,000 of wages (up to $5,600) for employers who hire veterans who have been unemployed longer than 6 months.” [White House, 11/21/11]

Ø  The Wounded Warriors Tax Credit Provides A Maximum Credit Of $9,600 Per Veteran For Businesses That Hire Veterans With Service Connected Disabilities Who Have Been Unemployed For Six Months Or Longer.  “The Wounded Warrior Tax Credit will double the existing tax credit for long-term unemployed veterans with service-connected disabilities. [The law will] maintain the existing Work Opportunity Tax Credit for veterans with service-connected disabilities (currently the maximum is $4,800) [and create] a new credit of 40 percent of the first $24,000 of wages (up to $9,600) for firms that hire veterans with service-connected disabilities who have been unemployed longer than 6 months.” [White House, 11/21/11]

President Obama Announced That Certain Grant Programs That Support Emergency Responder Programs Nationwide Will Give Preference To Communities That Recruit And Hire Post-9/11 Veterans. “The President will announce $166 million in 2012 Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Hiring Grant funding and $320 million in 2012 Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grants. The President will also announce that preference for these grants will now be given to communities that recruit and hire post-9/11 veterans to serve as police officers and firefighters.” [The White House, 2/3/12]

Joining Forces Has Secured Commitments From Private Companies To Hire “Upwards Of 135,000 Veterans And Spouses Over The Next Few Years.” “[Private] companies aim to hire upward of 135,000 veterans and spouses over the next couple of years through actions spurred by the White House’s military-support initiative…” [US Department of Defense, American Forces Press Service, 11/23/2011]

ROMNEY: “IF I’M PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, WITH YOUR HELP, I WILL TELL THE TRUTH.”

SEE ABOVE