Romney Campaign Press Release - President Obama's Imaginary Recovery

"For millions of middle-class families, Vice President Biden couldn't be more out of touch on the state of the economy. After claiming yesterday 'the middle class is coming back,' the Vice President is now claiming that 'Detroit is getting back up.' But after nearly four years, middle-class families are struggling with lower income, fewer jobs, and increasing unemployment. The Romney-Ryan plan will provide 12 million new jobs, higher take-home pay and a brighter future for the middle class." – Ryan Williams, Romney Campaign Spokesman

Today In Michigan, Vice President Biden Claimed "Detroit Is Getting Back Up!":

Vice President Biden, Today: "Detroit Is Getting Back Up!" "And guess what, Detroit is getting back up! Detroit is getting back up!" (Vice President Joe Biden, Remarks At A Campaign Event, Detroit, MI, 8/22/12)

And Today Isn't The First Time The Obama Administration Has Invented A Recovery They Simply Haven't Delivered:

August 2012: "The Middle Class Is Coming Back ... They Are Starting To Come Back." BIDEN: "Folks, the middle class is coming back, they have been ravaged. They have been ravaged. But they are starting to come back." (Vice President Joe Biden, Remarks At A Campaign Event, Minneapolis, MN, 8/21/12)

July 2012: "We Tried Our Plan – And It Worked." OBAMA: "Just like we've tried their plan, we tried our plan – and it worked. That's the difference. That's the choice in this election. That's why I'm running for a second term." (President Barack Obama, Remarks, Oakland, CA, 7/23/12)

June 2012: "The Private Sector Is Doing Fine." OBAMA: "The private sector is doing fine. Where we're seeing weaknesses in our economy have to do with state and local government – often times, cuts initiated by governors or mayors who are not getting the kind of help that they have in the past from the federal government..." (President Barack Obama, Press Conference, Washington, DC, 6/8/12)

February 2012: "The Recovery Is Speeding Up." PRESIDENT OBAMA: "The economy is growing stronger. The recovery is speeding up. And the last thing we can afford to do right now is to go back to the very policies that got us into this mess in the first place. We can't afford it." (President Barack Obama, Remarks, 2/13/12)

December 2010: "Recovery Is Beginning To Take Hold." PRESIDENT OBAMA: "Now, fortunately, we've seen some encouraging signs that a recovery is beginning to take hold.  An economy that had been shrinking for nearly a year is now growing." (President Barack Obama, Remarks, Winston-Salem, NC, 12/6/10)

June 2010: "This Summer Is Sure To Be A Summer Of Economic Recovery." "As the summer heats up, it is becoming clear that it could quite possibly be the most active season yet when it comes to recovering our economy. ... This summer is sure to be a Summer of Economic Recovery." (Ron Sims, "A Summer Of Recovery," White House Blog, 6/17/10)

But The People Of Detroit – And All Middle-Class Americans – Aren't Experiencing President Obama's Imaginary Recovery:

In The Last Three Months, The Unemployment Rate In The Detroit Metropolitan Area Has Increased A Full Percentage Point From 9.2% To 10.2 %. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Accessed 8/22/12)

Pew Research: "The Middle Class Has Shrunk In Size, Fallen Backward In Income And Wealth, And Shed Some ... Of Its Characteristic Faith In The Future." "Since 2000, the middle class has shrunk in size, fallen backward in income and wealth, and shed some—but by no means all—of its characteristic faith in the future." ("The Lost Decade of the Middle Class," Pew Research, 8/22/12)

• "For The First Time Since The End Of World War II, Mean Family Incomes Declined For Americans In All Income Tiers." "Their downbeat take on their economic situation comes at the end of a decade in which, for the first time since the end of World War II, mean family incomes declined for Americans in all income tiers. But the middle-income tier—defined in this Pew Research analysis as all adults whose annual household income is two-thirds to double the national median —is the only one that also shrunk in size, a trend that has continued over the past four decades." ("The Lost Decade Of The Middle Class," Pew Research Center, 8/22/12)

"The Great Recession Officially Ended Three Years Ago, But Most Middle-Class Americans Are Still Feeling Pinched." ("The Lost Decade of the Middle Class," Pew Research, 8/22/12)

• 42 Percent Of Middle-Class Adults Say Their Household's Financial Situation Is Worse Now Than It Was Before The Recession. "The downbeat short-term perspective is not surprising in light of the heavy economic blows delivered by the Great Recession of 2007-2009 and the sluggish recovery since. About four-in-ten (42%) middle-class adults say their household's financial situation is worse now than it was before the recession, while 32% say they are in better shape; an additional 23% volunteered that their finances are unchanged." ("The Lost Decade Of The Middle Class," Pew Research Center, 8/22/12)

More Than Twenty-Three Million Americans Are Unemployed, Underemployed, Or Have Given Up Looking For Work. (Bureau of Labor Statistics, www.bls.gov, 8/22/12)

In July, Unemployment Increased In Forty-Four States Across America. "Forty-four states recorded unemployment rate increases, two states and the District of Columbia posted rate decreases, and four states had no change, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today." (Bureau of Labor Statistics, www.bls.gov, 8/17/12)

Since President Obama Took Office, Median Household Income Has Declined By $4,300. "Yet real median household income in March was down $4,300 since Obama took office in January 2009 and down $2,900 since the June 2009 start of the economic recovery, according to an analysis of census data by Sentier Research, an economic- consulting firm in Annapolis, Maryland." (Mike Dorning, "Obama Fails To Stem Middle-Class Slide He Blamed On Bush," Bloomberg, 4/30/12)

"The Ranks Of America's Poor Are On Track To Climb To Levels Unseen In Nearly Half A Century..." "The ranks of America's poor are on track to climb to levels unseen in nearly half a century, erasing gains from the war on poverty in the 1960s amid a weak economy and fraying government safety net." (Hope Yen, "US Poverty On Track To Rise To Highest Since 1960s," The Associated Press, 7/22/12)

CBS News: "This Is The Worst Economic Recovery America Has Ever Had." CBS' SCOTT PELLEY: "Good evening. This is the worst economic recovery America has ever had. We'd been looking for hopeful signs, but today the chairman of the Federal Reserve threw a cold splash of reality on those hopes." ("CBS Evening News," 7/17/12)