Loyal to the End

It's hard to critique John Snow's performance as Treasury Secretary from the perspective of fulfilling expectations. When he was brought in a few years back to replace Paul O'Neill it was clear what the job entailed - be a loyal spokesman for the White House.

It should be entertaining to contrast the public statements of the incoming Secretary with those of the outgoing Secretary, who, in this commentary on Friday's jobs report is proving to be loyal to the very end.

"With unemployment at a remarkable 4.6 percent, this month's employment report shows continued strength in the U.S. labor market and an economy moving in the right direction. These gains are broad-based, with Hispanic unemployment at a new record low and African American unemployment reaching historic lows, lower than the average of the 1990s.

"We have now seen thirty-three straight months of job growth and more than 5.3 million new jobs created since the President's 2003 tax cuts took effect.

"Today's report is good news for American families. It shows that our economy is on solid footing and that we are heading in the right direction, giving Americans a renewed sense of optimism.

"With more people working, more good jobs, and more businesses hiring, it is not surprising that federal government revenues are up smartly. The surge in tax receipts is bringing down the government deficit ahead of the President's goal. Clearly this demonstrates that Americans can enjoy the benefits of rising prosperity and low tax rates with a declining federal deficit.

"My recent announcement that I will leave Treasury marks this as my last official jobs day statement. I am pleased to note that virtually everywhere one looks there is good economic news. I take great satisfaction in the strong expansion the country is enjoying."

Many thought the report was remarkable in ways very different than those enumerated by Secretary Snow. Maybe he figured that this was going to be his last commentary regarding employment, and felt inclined to lay it on extra-thick.

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The cartoon in The Economist this week was not particularly exciting, but this ad from the CIA was pretty eye-catching. The blurry, offset font in the title is very curious - what could they have possibly been thinking when this was being discussed with the advertising agency?

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