So How’s All That Government Intervention Working For You?

Gallup offers a reality check for those who believe the economic policies of the current White House and Congress are just what we need.

Gallup’s Economic Confidence Index worsened by five points during the week ending May 23, suggesting that Tuesday’s Conference Board report indicating that consumer confidence increased in May is already out of date. While economic confidence improved in late April and early May — most likely in response to the recent better job numbers — Gallup’s daily monitoring of economic confidence documents deterioration last week. This likely reflects fallout from the European financial crisis manifested in the declining U.S. stock market, and not included in Tuesday’s consumer confidence report.

Important Life Lessons for These Students

Give Orange High School students a pat on the back. Through a partnership with Habitat for Humanity, they’ve built a home in Hillsborough for two cousins and learned key life lessons in the process: the importance of long-term commitment, the value of a hard day’s work, and the good feeling in the soul that comes with helping someone.