Bush Lied and Jobs Died

OK, maybe he didn’t know he was making stuff up. Maybe it was his speechwriters. His Secretary of Commerce. Anyway, it doesn’t matter. He made headlines on Labor Day, and the truth is appears several days later hidden in the back pages of the Washington Post and probably no where else.

Not So 'New' After All


By Al Kamen

Friday, September 5, 2003; Page A19

President Bush announced Monday that he is creating a new position of manufacturing czar, otherwise known as the assistant secretary of commerce for manufacturing and services, to focus on boosting the faltering manufacturing sector.

Turns out this is not really so new, congressional and Commerce Department folks say. The existing post of assistant commerce secretary for trade development will get the new name, along with some new functions. The trade post was probably going to be eliminated anyway as part of a long-running reorganization of the Commerce Department's International Trade Administration.

"I guess we can't say the new manufacturing initiative has created at least one new job after all," a Senate Republican aide quipped to our colleague Jonathan Weisman.

And the change apparently was not Bush's idea. It was mandated in the House version of the 2004 Commerce, Justice and State appropriations bill.

P.S. Read down further in the Post column: Condi Lied and Americans didn't die.