Not a joke: Obama administration mulling “Department of Jobs”

You cannot make this stuff up.

Administration officials say that their focus is on a number of smaller programs that could benefit the economy, a theme Mr. Obama has emphasized in his recent speeches.

“We know there are things Congress can do, right now, to get more money back in your pockets, get this economy growing faster and get our friends and neighbors back to work,” Mr. Obama said on Saturday in his weekly address.

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The administration may also merge the Department of Commerce, the Office of the United States Trade Representative and some economic divisions at the State Department into a new agency, administration officials said. Possible names include the Department of Jobs or the Department of Competitiveness.

If you read the full story at the link, you’ll see that this idea is being floated mainly in the context of a 2012 political strategy for Obama. The administration wants to at least appear to be doing something about the economy, even as it’s pretty clear the President couldn’t care less. We can’t accuse Obama of not focusing on jobs if he’s pushing for a whole new Cabinet-level department devoted to them – right? I guess that’s the logic here. Never mind that Obama’s failed economic policies are the main reason we’re in this mess to begin with.

But as long as we’re brainstorming here, I think I have a better name for the new agency: The Department of Ditch-Digging and Ditch-Filling.


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