There's only one reason GM is undertaking all these plant closings and layoffs: it has determined what it needs to do to survive

Nothing like cutting over 14,000 jobs and closing assembly plants to make for some strange bedfellows. Donald Trump, Justin Trudeau and the UAW all hate it.

As with anything of this magnitude and complexity, there are several factors leading to the decision. Trump's tariffs certainly are one, as is the fact that the company never really fully got on its feet after the 2009 bailout. Demographic trends also figure in, with consumers shifting from sedans to SUVs and trucks, and people buying fewer motor vehicles overall. Milennials aren't even getting driver's licenses until later than their forebears.

A former GM executive's take that ought to get mentioned before the thirteenth paragraph of a story about it:

Former GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz said the automaker historically would have raised sales incentives to try to sell more cars before resorting to plant closures.

"Nowadays GM looks at the hard reality, says we've got a demand problem on cars, what are we going to do about it. We have to shut some facilities and move production to truck plants," Lutz said on CNBC's "Halftime Report." "So I think what we are seeing is a fast-acting and reality-oriented GM management."

It gets back to the LITD first law of economics: The money has to come from somewhere.

It's on purpose - today's edition

The Most Equal Comrade is no doubt all grins at how well his Coward-Piven strategy is working. The cattle-masses are good and hobbled:

Employers in May added the fewest number of workers in almost six years, reflecting broad cutbacks that may raise concern about U.S. growth and prompt Federal Reserve policy makers to put off an increase in interest rates.

The addition of 38,000 workers, the fewest since September 2010, followed a 123,000 advance in April that was smaller than previously estimated, a Labor Department report showed Friday. The increase in May was less than the most pessimistic forecast in a Bloomberg survey. The jobless rate dropped to 4.7 percent, the lowest since November 2007, as Americans left the labor force.

Smaller employment gains reduce the odds of a more pronounced upturn in household spending and economic growth after a poor start to the year. Fed officials will take into account more judicious hiring, at a time when corporate profits are on a downswing and global markets remain weak, as they consider whether to raise interest rates again.

“The slowdown in job growth looks pretty pervasive across industries,” said Michael Feroli, chief U.S. economist at JPMorgan Chase & Co. in New York. “It raises some questions about the momentum of growth and about the outlook. The easy thing to say is, this takes June off the table for a Fed hike. To get to July, we’re going to need a pretty nice rebound in the data.”

Oh, and let's check in on how the "A"CA is doing:

Obamacare’s 13th co-op announced it’s closing ahead of the 2017 open enrollment period, and more of the nonprofit insurers could follow suit in the coming months.

Ohio’s InHealth Mutual announced late last week it would be closing its doors after the state’s Department of Insurance requested to liquidate the insurer.

As insurers prepare to submit proposed rate changes to the government ahead of the next open enrollment period, it’s likely Ohio’s co-op won’t be the last to close its doors.

“I think there are a couple of reasons why the picture will be clearer later in the summer,” Ed Haislmaier, a Heritage Foundation senior research fellow in health policy, told The Daily Signal. “First, insurers are making decisions to participate in the exchange and submitting rates. The other is the risk adjustment formula will kick in for the last plan year, 2015, this summer.”

“Based on that, some companies may not make it. Some companies may decide to exit,” he continued.
InHealth Mutual enrolled nearly 22,000 consumers, with the majority selecting individual market plans. Customers now have 60 days to select a new plan on the federal exchange.
Ohio’s co-op, or consumer operated and oriented plan, is the 13th co-op created under the Affordable Care Act to close its doors. Twenty-four co-ops launched in 2013 with a total of $2.4 billion in start up and solvency loans awarded by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
InHealth Mutual received $129.2 million in loans, according to the agency.Collectively, the now 13 failed co-ops received more than $1.3 billion in loans and enrolled more than 730,000 consumers across the 14 states they served. Those consumers were forced to pick new plans on the exchanges.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has not yet said definitively whether the co-ops will be able to repay the loans received. However, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Acting Administrator Andy Slavitt told a congressional panel his agency is working with the Justice Department to recoup the money.

Many of the co-ops that closed their doors did so late last year and cited Obamacare’s risk corridor program as their reason for doing so. 

Domestically as well as on the world stage, The Great Leveling Project is firing on all cylinders.

Why any politician who runs on "jobs for the middle class" is blowing smoke

NRO has an interesting piece today. It's an interview by Neal B. Freeman, whose association with National Review goes back to having been personally acquainted with Frank S. Meyer and James Burnham, of Kevin Williamson, who, longtime LITD readers know, is regarded around these parts as one of the most eloquent and principled defenders of our Three Pillars writing today.

In the course of their conversation, they touch on the rank protectionism implicit in Squirrel-Hair's position, such as it is, on international trade. That in turn leads them to a look at what S-H and his Bot minions are attempting to do: Play upon post-Americans' yearnings for some kind of proverbial good old days.

Williamson makes two points that are really of a piece regarding the reality of human work and human advancement's effect on it:

FREEMAN:​ A related question, then. All elections, as they say, are about jobs. Traditionally (by which I mean, self-obsessively, through the span of my own lifetime), one party has been about new jobs, the other about old jobs. That is to say, one party, usually the Republican, promotes policies that it says will create new jobs, while the other, usually the Democratic, promotes policies to protect existing jobs. This year both parties seem committed to saving the old jobs. Has the party of fear routed the party of hope? Is this what a tipping point looks like?

WILLIAMSON:​ Maybe not a tipping point, but an unfortunate period of confluence. The average life of a Fortune 500 company in the early Sixties was about 75 years. Today it’s about 15 years and declining. Even if you have the most sought-after skills in the world and the best career plan ever, it’s nearly impossible today to get out of school and go to work for a company where you’re going to stay for the rest of your working life. Add to that the facts that production lines have shorter lifespans, skills become obsolete more quickly, and markets change more rapidly. There is very little “job security” for anybody.

FREEMAN:​ And that explains the nostalgia for the old jobs?

WILLIAMSON:​ What people miss about those old jobs — at least as they existed in our national mythology — is that they were stable. They paid crap. Go back and look at how expensive ordinary food staples such as butter and sugar were in the Sixties as a share of the typical household income, to say nothing of meals out or travel, and it is impossible to avoid the conclusion that these people were poor, and quite poor, by our standards. But they had — again, the mythology isn’t quite the reality — a measure of stability that is no longer available even to the highly skilled and highly educated, and many of us long for that, intensely. 

The S-H camp is not the first political movement to make that the lens through which it would have voters view the defining issue or their time. Mitt Romney prattled about "jobs for the middle class" in 2012, and there were precedents to his rhetoric.

The fact is, anybody who asks the public to hire him or her to assume a position in government on the basis of being able to "bring good jobs back" is taking a leftist line, even if he or she claims to be a conservative (maybe even a "severe" conservative). Like health care, which is a subcategory of general human endeavor, work only happens when someone somewhere comes up with an idea of providing something of value to his fellow human beings. There is no over-arching entity that can possibly guarantee that there will be something for anyone to do that can earn one a living.

Real conservatism requires faith in human ingenuity. And that's only unleashed when all collectivist constraints upon it are removed.

Conservatism is a real, fleshed-out worldview. "Populism" is a mere hodgepodge, a sentiment, an unfocused insistence that some caped superhero ride in and restore things to some mythical stability.

We'll do a lot less fretting when we think, regarding this matter of work, in the least centralized terms we can. It boils down to the age-old question: What would you like to do, and is there a market for it?

Friday afternoon roundup

Illegal alien flood redux: between the beginning of October and the end of March, 27,754 unaccompanied children were apprehended at the Mexican border. How many ore slid through?

On a related note, the Most Equal Comrade's regime has deported less than 1 percent of visa overstays.

Squirrel-Hair's Cinco de Mayo edition of Boneheaded Tweet of the Day: It sports a photo of him sitting at his desk, about to dig into a taco bowl. It says: "Happy Cinco de Mayo! The best taco bowls are made in Trump Tower Cafe. I love Hispanics!"

Wall Street had expected a 203,000-new-job gain in April, but the actual number was 160,000. And 94 million post-Americans are not in the work force.

Livin' the planned-decline dream

The latest jobs report paints a sad picture:

A paltry 142,000 jobs created in September.

Per the AP, the regime has "sharply lowered its estimate of gains in July and August by 59,000. Monthly job growth averaged a mediocre 167,000 in the July - September quarter, down from 231,000 in the April - June period."

Caterpillar, Wal-Mart, ConAgra Foods, and Chesapeake Energy are all laying off.

The labor participation rate is 62.4%, the lowest since 1978.

Consider all this in context:

It's fitting that we get a disappointing jobs report in the very week that the administration says it will move forward with a new ozone containment rule that the National Association of Manufacturers says will be one of the biggest job-killing regulations in American history.

Obama still won't allow the Keystone Pipeline, or the exporting of oil, which would be a major job producer. He won't cut the corporate tax, or roll back ObamaCare rules hindering employment. His grandiose plans to save the planet come before putting Americans to work.

It seems impossible to LITD to reach any conclusion other than that the Most Equal Comrade, the comandantes of his nomenkatura, and the Freedom-Hater Party to which they all belong have a policy of hobbling America and leveling everything and everyone to a standard of mediocrity. They aim to stamp out the ambition that naturally burns in the human heart.

This is our enemy in the war for America's soul.

It's on purpose - today's edition

By now, there's a good chance you've heard about yesterday's lame jobs report, and the record number of people (93 million) who have given up looking for work.

It's time to get real about why there's been no serious rebound:

Year after year, the economy fails to perform as expected. Year after, year, excuses are found. The Associated Press acknowledges that growth has been persistently inadequate:

Some of the first quarter’s slowdown is no doubt due to an especially harsh winter. Yet nearly six years into the recovery from the Great Recession, the economy’s muddled progress seems inescapable. A long-awaited breakout remains elusive, suggesting that the economy’s direction has never been quite as simple as some analysts, politicians and bar stool philosophers would have it.

The AP offers a number of explanations for the economy’s poor performance: weather, the strong dollar, fluctuations in the price of oil, a lack of wage growth–this is an effect, not a cause–and the robotization of the economy.

Perhaps when all such excuses have been tried and found wanting, reporters and pundits will be forced to admit that among all the vicissitudes of the last six years, the consistent element has been liberal policies. Those liberal policies–extravagant government spending, steadily mounting debt, endless regulations, cronyism and the suppression of innovation, promotion of expensive energy, war on cheap electricity, and all the rest–have condemned a generation of Americans to limited opportunities for employment, promotion and the acquisition of wealth.

By and large, the overlords don't want the cattle-masses getting too innovative or ambitious.  You know, thinking for themselves, starting and growing businesses.

A nice, mediocre baseline around which most of them hover.  That's the Freedom-Hater vision.  Glorious, isn't it?

Freedom Haters are big on "sustainability" except when it comes to economics

So what do you think of all the pathetic spin coming from government officials and pundits trying to put a happy face on the CBO report about diminishing work hours and subsidized FHer-care?

Carl Cannon, in a piece worth reading in its entirety, gets to the essence of what is going to happen:

The CBO report isn’t really about job-lock—at least in the way the term had been used until now. The problem was previously understood to mean that barriers to obtaining health insurance were preventing Americans from moving to more attractive jobs, starting their own businesses, and, yes, even occasionally taking early retirement.

What the CBO report makes plain is that under Obamacare a huge cohort of Americans will realize they’d be better off financially if they cut back on their hours or quit working altogether so as to not jeopardize their (taxpayer-financed) health care subsidies.

Here’s the rub: Who will be paying for their health care costs? There are two possible answers; one: Americans who remain in the workforce, most of whom are middle class, with economic worries of their own; two: future generations of Americans—as we are borrowing prodigiously to pay for current spending.

Yet more lopsidedness.  Numbers don't lie.  This just won't work.

It's on purpose - today's edition

The FHers' agenda of planned decline is right on track.  Another cruddy monthly jobs report for January.

The wackiest thing this country ever did

 . . . is to enact Freedom-Hater-care.  Whether one calls this latest revelation about what a disaster it is an oopsie or highly effective planned decline, there's no arguing that it is indeed a disaster.

"CBO estimates that the ACA will reduce the total number of hours worked, on net, by about 1.5 to 2 percent during the period from 2017 to 2024, almost entirely because workers will choose to supply less labor—given the new taxes and other incentives they will face and the financial benefits some will receive," said the report. 

"The reduction in CBO's projections of hours worked represents a decline in the number of full-time-equivalent workers of about 2.0 million in 2017, rising to about 2.5 million in 2024," it added.

The White House responded to the report, saying it does not show that Obamacare will reduce jobs. 

"CBO's findings are not driven by an assumption that ACA will lead employers to eliminate jobs or reduce hours, in fact, the report itself says that there is 'no compelling evidence that part-time employment has increased as a result of the ACA,'" said a statement from the White House. 

The CBO estimated last year that 7 million people would sign up for health insurance through Obamacare in 2014, but computer problems have now lowered their estimate by a million, The Wall Street Journal reported. 

Kill FHer-care before it kills America.

It's on purpose - today's edition

One thing the Freedom-Haters have down cold is planned decline.  Today we're seeing another dismal jobs report:

The worst news comes in the workforce numbers. Those not in the workforce increased by 525,000 in December (91.808 million), after a one-time drop in the figure for November (91.283M from 91.756M in October).  That’s a big exodus of people from the workforce, dwarfing the meager number of jobs added in the economy. Part-time work remained essentially constant at 7.8 million, so the exodus points to an ugly, ugly trend.

Not surprisingly, that lead to a decline in the workforce participation rate, back down to 62.8%. That matches the 36-year low hit in October, which is one reason why the unhinged U-3 continues to drop.  The workforce number acts as the denominator for U-3, which means that the result will “improve” as the workforce declines. The U-6 metric, which considers more of those who are only marginally attached to the workforce, remains at 13.1%.

The overlords are well on their way to the goal of a nation of cattle.

UPDATE:  Even the regime's own propaganda arm can't spin this one. 

It's on purpose - today's edition

Labor force participation continues to set records - for low numbers.  It's now at 62.8 percent, the lowest level since 1978 - and we all know what era we were living through then.

Can you say "tipping point?"

Here's what country you live in: recipients of gummint benefits outnumber year-round full-time workers.

Who's shaving what

Investors Business Daily has a pretty exhaustive list of businesses shedding hours and / or jobs outright as a result of Freedom-Hater-care.

It's on purpose - today's edition

US labor force participation hasn't been this low since the Jimmuh era.

An energy phenomenon he loathes may have saved the MEC's political bacon in 2012

AEI's James Pethokoukis, citing an IHS Global Insight report, says that the economic blessings of red-state fossil-fuel extraction may have been a strong factor in putting the Most Equal Comrade over the top in his second presidential race.  Increases in disposable income and job creation, certainly discernible in those states, but having a national effect as well, was a lone outpost of good economic news that no doubt factored into voters' thinking.

Without the shale revolution, election year 2012 might have seen the official unemployment over 9% in November instead of 7.8%. And the average American would have faced a higher cost of living and lower income. More importantly now, the US energy industry continues to be a real economic bright spot.

The quintessential formula for Freedom-Hater success: ride to glory on the fruits of good old capitalist activity.

It's on purpose - today's edition

How's this for an eye-popper?

`Outside of the federal government's Bureau of Labor statistics, the Gallup polling organization also tracks the nation's unemployment rate. While the BLS and Gallup findings might not always perfectly align, the trends almost always do and the small statistical differences just haven't been worthy of note. But now Gallup is showing a sizable 30 day jump in the unemployment rate, from 7.7% on July 21 to 8.9% today.

This is an 18-month high.

Wowee zowee!

The MEC regime is right on track with its aim to bring the masses to their knees, begging the leviathan state for a bit of daily gruel.

It's on purpose - today's edition

A new upside-the-head survey from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce says that 74 percent of small businesses plan to cut hours and / or jobs as a result of FHer-care.

There's more:

— 77 percent continue to think the U.S. economy is on the wrong track. However, small businesses are more optimistic about their local economy and individual business.

— The majority (61 percent) of small businesses do not have plans to hire next year.

— Concerns about regulation have increased significantly from 35 percent last quarter to 42 percent now.

Small businesses are looking for leadership on issues that will remove barriers and encourage growth.

— 88 percent of all small businesses support addressing entitlement spending to resolve America's growing financial challenges and escalating debt.

— 83 percent support congressional efforts to reform the tax code — with the majority focusing on making it less complex.

— 81 percent of small businesses surveyed believe the immigration system is broken and needs to be reformed.

— In contrast to the president's recent speech pushing new energy regulations, 90 percent of small businesses support easing EPA regulations and opening up more federal lands for drilling.

Cloward and Piven time in post-America.

Still in decline

Larry Kudlow, who is usually a pony-in-here-somewhere optimist (about three years ago, he wrote a column called "The Coming V-Shaped Boom," right before the MEC economy took a turn for the worse; perhaps the experience chastened him), demonstrates the ongoing underlying weakness of our situation, despite the upbeat nature of some stats in the April jobs report.

Which, of course, is the desired effect for the architects of the Great Leveling.

It's on purpose - today's edition

Grim news from ADP about private-sector payrolls.

It's on purpose - today's edition

The economy added the fewest number of jobs in March of any month in the last nine.  Lots of people keep dropping out of the workforce, too.