Beltway insider: Sequester Furlough Prompts Give Backs; March Job Numbers, Assad Alive; North Korea Issues Warnings

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Sequester furlough notices were sent out this week to federal employees as the government begins to tighten its belt in the wake of the effort to cut 1.2trillion dollars from the deficit over the next ten years.

According to Gallup, President Obama’s job approval, over the past week, gained three percentage points, to 49% of those polled approve of his effectiveness as President and those who disapprove of his effectiveness as President dropped a three percentage point to 44%.

President Obama in a show of solidarity was prompted after Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, a republican, decided to give back a portion of his salary to the Department of Defense, to also return a portion of his salary.

President Obama’s salary is set and he, personally, does not have the authority to manipulate or alter it. He has pledged to write a personal check in the amount of 5% of his $400,000 paycheck, a total of $20,000, and return the monies to the Department of Treasury.

Other top officials who have also decided to give back a percentage of their salaries include Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan and Deputy Secretary Maurice Jones, Sen. Mark Begich, D-Alaska, Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo.

Secretary of State John Kerry is also participating. He has chosen to give back 5% of his $183,500 salary directly a charity that support state department families.

The Sequester furlough notices will affect all federal employees on all level including those in the White House and West Wing. The best suggestion, at this time, is to use mid-week days to conduct any federal business.

March Job Numbers Released

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics released March Job Numbers this week.

The economy, which was considered deeply sluggish in February with a total of 236,000 jobs added, has almost flat lined with a dismal 88,000 jobs added in March.

The dreary showing did little to reverse the overall unemployment rate which has fallen, minimally, since September 2012, to 7.7%.  The total number of unemployed, 11.7million, and the long term unemployment rate, those individuals who have been out of work for twenty-six weeks or more, which accounts for 4.6million, has not changed over the past month.

The BLS lists trend in the job market and has added “Discouraged Workers” to the monthly review of employment statistics. Discouraged Workers are defined as individuals who are not looking for employment as they feel there are no jobs for them. The amount of discouraged workers in March totaled 803,000.

Professional Services and Health Care represented the sectors which gained in March.  Both have experienced steady growth over the past twelve months.

Across the board the fifty states have a dramatic pendulum swing in employment numbers with California, Mississippi and Nevada experiencing the highest numbers with 9.6 each. North Dakota has the lowest jobless rate at 3.3%.  Of the fifty states, twenty-two had unemployment numbers drastically lower than the national average.  Eleven States had higher unemployment and seventeen states and the District of Columbia measured equivalent numbers to the national unemployment rate of 7.7%.

North Korea Issues Statement

Kim Jong-un, the Supreme leader of North Korea, has maintained his position of War against the west this week as he issued warning to foreign embassies.

His recent declaration of War has carried varying degrees of concern from the world at large ranging from minimal recognition by China to a more controlled caution from the Brit’s who are taking his recent warnings under advisement.

Kim Jong-um appears to have moved his missile launchers which could be his version of check, in the global game of chess, as he awaits the world to respond.

Assad Assassination Hoax

Rumors of Syrian Dictator Basher al-Assad circulated globally have appeared to have been a hoax. The motivation behind the farce has yet been determined.

Assad remains an unpopular, troubled, ruler with surrounding countries including all allies of the United States pressing for him to willingly or through force leave his position so too install a leader with friendlier ties to the region and the United States.

For more information on President Obama: www.whitehouse.gov 

 

Sources; Gallup, Bureau of Labor Statistics

 

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