(President
Bush) offered no new job-creation proposals at a time the national unemployment
rate still hovers at 6%. And though he trumpeted the turning economy, residents
of Michigan aren't celebrating yet. Said Bill
Ballenger, editor of the newsletter 'Inside Michigan Politics': "It's
hard to be appreciative of the stories about the great economic recovery
in the country when there's absolutely no evidence of it in your own back
yard."
Michigan
is tied with Oregon for the highest
unemployment rate in the country, up to 7.6%, the highest it's been
in 11 years. (The
state has lost over 180,000 jobs since January, 2001.)
And
although President Bush touted a study that showed manufacturing gains,
the study also showed that "manufacturers
remain reluctant to hire," preferring to transfer production offshore.
In the past year, Michigan
has lost 30,000 manufacturing jobs.
And
these losses affect the state's economy as a whole. "With fewer Michigan
residents working, state sales, income and business tax revenues have dropped
to lower-than-expected levels, creating a $920 million deficit" in the
state budget. Last month, Moody's
Investors Services lowered Michigan's top-notch credit rating, as the
state's manufacturing-based economy continues to struggle to emerge from
its recession.