California Workers Under Bush - REAL STATISTICS

Nationwide:  2.9 Million Private Sector Jobs Lost; Unemployment At 5.6 Percent—Up 33 Percent Since Bush Took Office.   [Bureau of Labor Statistics, http://www.bls.gov]

California Fact: 284,900 Jobs Lost; Unemployment At 6.4 Percent—Up 36 Percent Since Bush Took Office.  [Bureau of Labor Statistics, http://www.bls.gov]


Nationally, Workers’ Wages and Salaries Are Stagnant.  [Department of Commerce, 12/23/03; New York Times, 12/31/03]

California Fact: Under Bush, Over 1 Million Workers In California May Lose Critical Overtime Pay.  [New York Times, 7/1/03; Economic Policy Institute, July 2003]


Nationally, Nearly 2.8 Million Manufacturing Jobs Lost Under Bush, And Account For 95 Percent of All Job Loss. [Bureau of Labor Statistics, http://www.bls.gov]

California Fact: 300,800 Manufacturing Jobs Have Been Lost Under Bush.  [Bureau of Labor Statistics, http://www.bls.gov]


Nationally, 3.5 Million More Americans Have Fallen Into Poverty Under Bush — Poverty Rate Up To 12.1 Percent [Census Bureau, Poverty in the United States: 2002, Table 4, http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/poverty.html]


California Poverty Rate At 12.8 Percent — Up From 12.6 Percent In 2000-2001. [Census Bureau, Poverty in the United States: 2002, Table 4, http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/poverty.html]


Gas Costs Rising.  The cost of fuel in California has risen over the last year, and in the last month alone, it has increased 20 cents to $1.9 a gallon. [www.fuelguage.com]


6.4 Million California Residents (18.2 Percent) Have No Health Insurance. [Census Bureau, Historical Health Insurance Tables, Table HI06, http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/hlthins.html]


Nationally, Many Seniors Worse Off Under Bush Medicare Prescription Drug Plan.  The Medicare bill that President Bush signed in November 2003 includes limited prescription drug coverage but protects the interests of drug companies by failing to include measures to bring down the cost of prescriptions. The bill has been described as a “big win” for the drug industry, and nationwide, many seniors are worse off under the plan. [Wall Street Journal, 11/17/03; Senate HELP Committee Minority Staff, “National and State Impacts of the Medicare Prescription Drug Conference Proposal,” 11/03, emphasis added]

California Fact: California Seniors Hurt By Bush Plan.  

244,860 California Medicare beneficiaries will lose their employer-based retiree health benefits. 

860,700 seniors will pay more for the prescription drugs they need. [Senate HELP Committee Minority Staff, “National and State Impacts of the Medicare Prescription Drug Conference Proposal,” 11/03] 


Bush’s 2004 Budget Cut $200 Million From Impact Aid Program, Denying Education Funds For Children In Military Families.  [New York Times, 8/22/00; House Appropriations Committee, Minority Staff, 6/17/03, 6/16/03; Washington Post, 6/17/03]

California Fact: Bush Cut $11.9 Million In Impact Aid Money For California in His 2004 Budget. [Department of Education]

California Fact: Over 2.4 Million Veterans In California Affected By Bush Policies.  [Department of Veterans Affairs]


California’s Economic Growth Slowed Under Bush.  From 2000-2001 California’s gross state product has only grown by $29 million, compared to the last years of the Clinton administration, where it grew by more than $100 million. [www.bea.doc.gov/bea/regional/gsp]