The Western Word is coming to you, STILL, I repeat STILL, coronavirus free, from deep inside an underground bunker in Montana. The bunker also serves as the worldwide headquarters for The Western Word blog!
Quote of the day…
The virus shouldn’t have been named Corona. It should have been named Mad Dog…Mad Dog 2020. –Anonymous
Welcome to “Thursday Numbers!” In case you’re a first-time visitor, this is the weekly column where I take a look at the numbers that are in the news (in descending order) and provide commentary sometimes sprinkled with sarcasm and humor.
This week’s topics include unemployment claims, Bullock fundraising, USA coronavirus deaths, inmates released, big fat beautiful check, White House nominees, latest job approval, 2020 Census response rates, retail sales, Trump radio show, and much more!
5,245,000
In the week ending April 11, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial unemployment claims was 5,245,000, a decrease of 1,370,000 from the previous week’s revised level. The previous week’s level was revised up by 9,000 from 6,606,000 to 6,615,000. The 4-week moving average was 5,508,500, an increase of 1,240,750 from the previous week’s revised average. The previous week’s average was revised up by 2,250 from 4,265,500 to 4,267,750. (DOL.gov)
3,300,000
Montana Governor and U.S. Senate candidate Steve Bullock raised $3.3 million in campaign funds in the first three weeks of his candidacy, his campaign reported Wednesday. (MTN News)
That’s a good haul in a short amount of time no matter which side of the fence you park.
30,953
As of early this morning, Reuters is reporting that the coronavirus deaths in the USA total 30,953 and positive cases total 637,719. (Reuters)
A lot of people got sick and died due to the President’s poor leadership.
4,276
That’s how many (nonviolent) inmates were released from the Los Angeles County jail due to the coronavirus. (FoxLA.com)
It appears this is a great time to (nonviolently) break the law…
1,200
In his coronavirus task force briefing on Wednesday, President Trump says people will be “very happy” to get a big, fat, beautiful check with my name on it. (@TheWesternWord)
I tweeted, “Does he know it’s only $1200?”
82
In his coronavirus task force briefing on Wednesday, President Trump says “hundreds” of nominees have been waiting for Senate confirmation for three years. In fact, 82 nominations are currently pending. Another 150 positions are vacant with no one nominated by Trump. (@peterbakernyt)
You can see the list HERE and then you’ll see that Trump was lying, again.
45.9
That is the Real Clear Politics polling average for President Trump’s job approval from April 2-14. (RealClearPolitics.com)
He needs to get closer to 50% to have a better chance of being reelected.
45
That is Montana’s self-response rate ranking for the 2020 Census. Montana is coming in with a 41.4% rate. Minnesota leads the nation with a 58.8 response rate. (2020Census.gov)
Come on Montanans – don’t be afraid…
8.7
A preliminary report from the Commerce Department showed retail sales dropped 8.7 percent in March as consumers reined in spending on goods ranging from cars and clothing to meals at restaurants and drinks at bars. It was also reported that this is the biggest monthly decline since the Commerce Department started keeping records in 1992. (The Hill)
I guess this means that President Trump is leading in another category…
2
On a Saturday in early March, Donald J. Trump told the coronavirus task force that he wanted to start a White House talk radio show. The show would last for two hours and have open lines for callers. He decided against it because He did not want to compete with Rush Limbaugh. (NY Times)
Guess we know what Trump will be doing when he leaves office…
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The Western Word 