For months now, as Americans continue to ask ‘where are the jobs?,’ the Obama Administration has repeatedly promised to ‘pivot’ to jobs and the economy only to redouble its efforts to force a job-killing government takeover of health care through Congress.

This whole jobs ‘pivot’ is a prime example of how out-of-touch Washington Democrats are failing to address Americans’ highest priority: putting people back to work.  This is not merely a matter of semantics.  President Obama himself rejected a direct plea from a Democratic Senator to focus on jobs in favor of continuing his crusade for an unpopular, unaffordable government takeover of health care.  And during his health care speech yesterday, the President used the word ‘jobs’ twice.  It was bad enough that the jobs crisis became a ‘pivot’ point for this Administration – now it’s just an afterthought altogether. 

House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) released the following chronicle of the Obama Administration’s jobs ‘pivot,’ and noted the toll this fallacy is taking on families and small businesses:

PRESIDENT OBAMA’S URBAN LEGEND: PHONY PIVOTS TO “JOBS” = JOB-KILLING GOV’T TAKEOVER OF HEALTH CARE

November 2009: 11,000 jobs lost

• “President Obama announced Thursday that he would convene a jobs conference at the White House next month…The jobs forum in December will include business leaders, small-business owners, labor union leaders and others.  It marks a pivot for Democrats as they head into next year's midterm elections.” (The New York Times, 11/13/09)

• “President Barack Obama will this week pivot quickly from Afghanistan to a top domestic peril for his political prospects -- 10 percent jobless figures clouding hopes of economic recovery.” (AFP, 11/30/09)

• “After months in which his focus has been on a health care overhaul and foreign policy issues, President Obama will pivot later this week to the economy…” (New York Times, 11/30/09)

December 2009: 85,000 jobs lost

• “Obama promises to keep focus on job creation” (Associated Press, 12/4/09)

• “SIREN: White House plans ‘very hard pivot to jobs’ next month. … WEST WING MIND MELD — A VERY HARD PIVOT TO JOBS in January: ‘We’ll be very prescriptive on what we want to see on jobs legislation and we’ll work with Congress, [which] has an important role in it.  When health care is done (not meaning the president has signed it — once it’s off the front burner), we’re going to make a very hard pivot to jobs in the run-up to the State of the Union.’” (Politico Playbook, 12/23/09)

January 2010: 20,000 jobs lost

• “President Obama pivots to jobs as key theme.” (Politico, 1/8/10)

• “Jobs take priority on Hill as elections loom. … Both chambers now must forge a compromise health care bill, but Democrats, who control both bodies, say they're looking to pivot to the jobs agenda.” (The Washington Times, 1/12/10)

• President Obama: “What they can expect from this administration, and I know what they can expect from you, is that we are going to have a sustained and relentless focus over the next several months on accelerating the pace of job creation, because that's priority number one.” (Remarks to House Democrats, 1/14/10)

• “Beyond health care, the president always planned to pivot this year to a relentless focus on the economy, and that hasn’t changed, says White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs.” (NPR, 1/20/10)

• “Adviser David Axelrod yesterday said Obama aims to pivot to jobs, the economy and the needs of the middle class.” (Newsday, 1/20/10)

• “Pelosi also signaled that advancing health legislation through Congress will likely be a lengthy process — despite Democrats' desire for a quick election-year pivot to address jobs and the economy, which polls show are the public's top concern.” (Associated Press, 1/21/10)

• “Obama to pivot to jobs, spending in State of the Union message”  (Gannett, 1/27/10)

• “Senate Democrats are poised to pivot from a near singular focus on comprehensive healthcare reform to a focus on jobs, jobs, jobs…”  (Fox News, “The Speaker’s Lobby” blog, 1/27/10)

February 2010: 36,000 jobs lost

• “An embattled President Obama will focus on jobs and small businesses at a New Hampshire town meeting today meant to reconnect with angry middle-class voters… The Nashua event ‘is part of the post-Massachusetts plan to recalibrate Obama’s focus,’ said Larry Sabato, director of the center for politics at the University of Virginia. ‘They’re trying to pivot him away from health care and towards jobs.’” (Boston Herald, 2/2/10)

• ABC White House correspondent Jake Tapper: “Every week we’re told that there’s going to be a hard pivot to talk about jobs, and then every week something else happens.” (Fox Business Network,  “Imus in the Morning,” 2/17/10) 

• “After a year in which the health care legislation consumed much of the attention of Congress, Democrats are trying to pivot to make clear that lagging employment is now their primary concern.  [Majority Leader Steny] Hoyer, in a meeting with reporters, repeatedly pointed out that while health care legislation was important, employment issues would take top priority.” (The New York Times, 2/24/10)

March 2010

• ABC White House correspondent Jake Tapper: “White House officials have been saying that President Obama would make a hard pivot to focus on jobs and the economy. But Democrats on Capitol Hill say that the struggle to - pass health care reform legislation will likely last well into this month and perhaps into April.” (ABC’s Good Morning America, 3/1/10)

• “One Democratic senator who wanted to pivot to unemployment said [White House chief of staff Rahm] Emanuel shared his thinking.  ‘I understand, I understand. We have to get to jobs,’ the senator, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations, recalled Emanuel commiserating.  In a meeting with the president and chief of staff, the senator stated his case, but Obama decided the priority was seeing health-care reform through.” (The Washington Post, 3/2/10)

• NBC News’ Tom Brokaw: “Once they got bogged down in health care and the unemployment numbers stayed as high as they did, they didn't pivot in a way that a lot of people, including some of their most enthusiastic supporters, felt that they should have.” (NBC’s Today Show, 3/4/10)

• “A furious health care push – but what about jobs?  President Barack Obama’s furious, final push to get a health care bill passed threatens to shove aside the message he promised would top his list this year: creating jobs. … That kind of now-or-never campaign means the nation can expect a debate consumed by health care, again, for weeks.  ‘We're going to still be out there on jobs,’ Axelrod said, dismissing any worry that the economy-first message will be obscured. ‘We’re going to be focused on health care for the next few weeks, but we're still going to be doing jobs.’” (Associated Press, 3/6/10)

• CNN White House Correspondent Suzanne Malveaux: “Well, Kiran, certainly what's at stake, you mentioned this is really the finish line for the president.  This is his top domestic priority and he’s been trying to get this -- move the ball forward for a whole year now.  He would like to pivot to focusing on jobs.” (CNN, 3/8/10)

• New York Times columnist Bob Herbert: "The Obama administration and Democrats in general are in trouble because they are not urgently and effectively addressing the issue that most Americans want them to: the frightening economic insecurity that has put a chokehold on millions of American families. … But while the nation is desperate for jobs, jobs, jobs, the Democrats have spent most of the Obama era chanting health care, health care, health care.” (The New York Times, 3/9/10)