Changes

On March 5, Jim Cramer responded to the White House.<ref>[http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_030509/content/01125111.guest.html Liberal Jim Cramer Sees the Light], rushlimbaugh.com, March 5, 2009.</ref> Jim Cramer rebuked:  

On March 5, Jim Cramer responded to the White House.<ref>[http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_030509/content/01125111.guest.html Liberal Jim Cramer Sees the Light], rushlimbaugh.com, March 5, 2009.</ref> Jim Cramer rebuked:  

{{Cquote|Huh? Backup? Look at the incredible decline in the stock market, in all indices, since the inauguration of the President, with the drop accelerating when the budget plan came to light because of the massive fear and indecision the document sowed: Raising taxes on the eve of what could be a second [[Great Depression]], destroying the profits in health care companies, tinkering with the mortgage deduction at a time when U.S. house price depreciation is behind much of the world's morass and certainly the devastation affecting our banks, and pushing an aggressive cap and trade program that could raise the price of energy for millions of people. The market's the effect; much of what the president is fighting for is the cause. The market's signal can't be ignored. It's too palpable, too predictive to be ignored, despite the prattle that the markets predicted far more recessions than we have.<ref>{{cite news |title=Cramer: My Response To The White House |url=http://www.mainstreet.com/article/moneyinvesting/news/cramer-my-response-white-house?page=2 |publisher=MainStreet.com}}, 2009-05-03</ref>}}

{{Cquote|Huh? Backup? Look at the incredible decline in the stock market, in all indices, since the inauguration of the President, with the drop accelerating when the budget plan came to light because of the massive fear and indecision the document sowed: Raising [[taxes]] on the eve of what could be a second [[Great Depression]], destroying the profits in health care companies, tinkering with the mortgage deduction at a time when U.S. house price depreciation is behind much of the world's morass and certainly the devastation affecting our banks, and pushing an aggressive [[cap and trade]] program that could raise the price of energy for millions of people. The market's the effect; much of what the president is fighting for is the cause. The market's signal can't be ignored. It's too palpable, too predictive to be ignored, despite the prattle that the markets predicted far more recessions than we have.<ref>{{cite news |title=Cramer: My Response To The White House |url=http://www.mainstreet.com/article/moneyinvesting/news/cramer-my-response-white-house?page=2 |publisher=MainStreet.com}}, 2009-05-03</ref>}}

Cramer questioned criticism he received which he explained makes him "uncomfortable being in the crosshairs of columnists and comedians I enjoy."<ref>{{cite news |title=Cramer Takes on the White House, Frank Rich and Jon Stewart |url=http://www.mainstreet.com/article/moneyinvesting/news/cramer-takes-white-house-frank-rich-and-jon-stewart |publisher=MainStreet.com}}, 2009-09-03</ref><ref>[http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_030909/content/01125111.guest.html Welcome to the Club, Cramer], rushlimbaugh.com, March 9, 2009.</ref> Cramer asked, "So, why after toiling in the cable wilderness for four years with ''Mad Money'' am I the target of the wrath of the Obama clan, and the darling, albeit surely momentary, of the [[Tea Party Movement|Obama-critics]]? After all, my criticism of Obama's handling of the economic crisis is a lot less pointed than my withering August 2007 'They Know Nothing' meltdown against [[Ben Bernanke]] and the previous administration's handling of the economic crisis."<ref>{{cite news |title=Jim Cramer's famous rant about the "know nothing" Fed. |url=http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=808465173&play=1 |publisher=NBC}} July 29, 2007.</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Cramer: Bernanke, Wake Up |url=http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=452808336 |publisher=NBC}} 2007-03-08</ref>

Cramer questioned criticism he received which he explained makes him "uncomfortable being in the crosshairs of columnists and comedians I enjoy."<ref>{{cite news |title=Cramer Takes on the White House, Frank Rich and Jon Stewart |url=http://www.mainstreet.com/article/moneyinvesting/news/cramer-takes-white-house-frank-rich-and-jon-stewart |publisher=MainStreet.com}}, 2009-09-03</ref><ref>[http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/daily/site_030909/content/01125111.guest.html Welcome to the Club, Cramer], rushlimbaugh.com, March 9, 2009.</ref> Cramer asked, "So, why after toiling in the cable wilderness for four years with ''Mad Money'' am I the target of the wrath of the Obama clan, and the darling, albeit surely momentary, of the [[Tea Party Movement|Obama-critics]]? After all, my criticism of Obama's handling of the economic crisis is a lot less pointed than my withering August 2007 'They Know Nothing' meltdown against [[Ben Bernanke]] and the previous administration's handling of the economic crisis."<ref>{{cite news |title=Jim Cramer's famous rant about the "know nothing" Fed. |url=http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=808465173&play=1 |publisher=NBC}} July 29, 2007.</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Cramer: Bernanke, Wake Up |url=http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=452808336 |publisher=NBC}} 2007-03-08</ref>

=== Obama Accountability Index ===

=== Obama Accountability Index ===

The day after Barack Obama was sworn in, on January 21, 2009, an [[economist]] and [[television]] host of ''Mad Money'', Jim Cramer, created a stock index to track the new president's progress. Cramer chose companies that operated in the very sectors that needed the most help, and he suggested their performance would tell [[Americans]] how effective Obama had been and whether or not his plans to save the economy had worked. Solely based on the performance of the [[stock market]], Cramer created the "Obama Accountability Index."<ref>[http://www.cnbc.com/id/28753120 Cramer's 'State of the Market' Address], CNBC, Jan. 21, 2009.</ref> It consisted of six stocks: Bank of America (BAC), Citigroup (C), Caterpillar (CAT), [[General Electric]] (GE), [[General Motors]] (GM) and JPMorgan chase (JPM). It’s an equal-weighted index that starts at 100, using closing prices on the day the index was created as a baseline. Cramer said, "This index will grade Obama’s success as president. If he fails, so does the stock market."<ref>[http://derekerwin.blogspot.com/2009/02/obama-lied-our-economy-died.html Obama Lied, Our Economy Died], A 1-In-100 Blogger, February 2009.</ref>  

The day after [[Barack Obama]] was sworn in, on January 21, 2009, an [[economist]] and [[television]] host of ''Mad Money'', Jim Cramer, created a stock index to track the new president's progress. Cramer chose companies that operated in the very sectors that needed the most help, and he suggested their performance would tell [[Americans]] how effective Obama had been and whether or not his plans to save the economy had worked. Solely based on the performance of the [[stock market]], Cramer created the "Obama Accountability Index."<ref>[http://www.cnbc.com/id/28753120 Cramer's 'State of the Market' Address], CNBC, Jan. 21, 2009.</ref> It consisted of six stocks: Bank of America (BAC), Citigroup (C), Caterpillar (CAT), [[General Electric]] (GE), [[General Motors]] (GM) and JPMorgan chase (JPM). It’s an equal-weighted index that starts at 100, using closing prices on the day the index was created as a baseline. Cramer said, "This index will grade Obama’s success as president. If he fails, so does the stock market."<ref>[http://derekerwin.blogspot.com/2009/02/obama-lied-our-economy-died.html Obama Lied, Our Economy Died], A 1-In-100 Blogger, February 2009.</ref>  

On February 20, 2009, Jim Cramer graded the president's ability to rejuvenate the economy, based on the ''Obama Accountability Index''. Reviewing Obama's 30-Day Report Card, Cramer said, "Well, the index is down 35% since January 21, the day it was created. The S&P 500 over that same period has declined just 8%."<ref>[http://www.cnbc.com/id/29308202/ Obama's 30-Day Report Card], CNBC, Feb. 20, 2009.</ref> So Obama, at least according to Cramer’s portfolio, wasn't doing too well.

On February 20, 2009, Jim Cramer graded the president's ability to rejuvenate the economy, based on the ''Obama Accountability Index''. Reviewing Obama's 30-Day Report Card, Cramer said, "Well, the index is down 35% since January 21, the day it was created. The S&P 500 over that same period has declined just 8%."<ref>[http://www.cnbc.com/id/29308202/ Obama's 30-Day Report Card], CNBC, Feb. 20, 2009.</ref> So Obama, at least according to Cramer’s portfolio, wasn't doing too well.