AP Begins Laying Foundation to Blame the Future "Unexpectedly" Weak Christmas Season on Conservatives

If I were a retailer, I'd be more worried about this chart then political fallout from the latest political circus.

Yup. If the there's a weak Christmas season, and odds are it will be totally "unexpected," it'll be the fault of the government shutdown and the evil Tea Party. At least that's the groundwork the AP is already beginning to lay down. Remember, it's never too early to plan for Christmas.

From the AP (via Breitbart):

After weeks of bickering between Congress and the White House, President Barack Obama on Wednesday signed into law a plan that ended a partial 16-day government shutdown and suspended the nation's debt limit until early next year.

But the measure, which comes just weeks ahead of the holiday shopping season, only temporarily averts a potential default on U.S. debt that could send the nation into a recession.

Retailers hope that short-term uncertainty won't stop Americans from spending during the busiest shopping period of the year, but they're fearful that it will.

"I am not nervous, but I am mindful," said Jay Stein, chairman of Stein Mart, a 300-store chain that sells home goods and clothing. "The biggest enemy of consumer confidence is uncertainty."

Retailers and industry watchers say Washington gridlock already has caused shoppers to hold back on purchases.

The number of people going into stores nationwide dropped 7.5 percent for the week that ended Oct. 5 and 7.1 percent during the following week compared with a year ago, according to ShopperTrak, which measures foot traffic at 40,000 retail outlets across the country. Men's clothier Jos. A. Bank Clothiers and furniture chain Ethan Allen said their customers cut back in recent weeks. And auto sales, which had been strong, trailed off last week, with experts blaming Washington lawmakers.

Retailers say the agreement that lawmakers approved, which funds the government until Jan. 15 and gives the Treasury the ability to borrow above its limit until Feb. 7, may not be enough to alleviate shoppers' concerns.  

[...]  

Take Nino Rodriguez, who was already planning to cut back spending on gifts for his four children ages 3 to 21 by about 25 percent to $1,500 as he juggles stagnant wage gains with college tuition costs.

Now, the Chicagoan plans to cut another $500 from the holiday budget because of uncertainty. In particular, he's concerned about having government aid checks suspended for teenage sons who have special needs.

"The doomsday clock is just one second less than what it was before," said Rodriguez, who works in the hospitality business. "All this just heightens our awareness of spending."

This isn't the first time that debt-and-spending stalemates have hurt shoppers' mood during the holidays. Last year, Americans worried about tense negotiations in Washington to resolve the fiscal cliff, a simultaneous increase in tax rates and a decrease in government spending.

Congress and the White House reached a deal on Jan. 1 that prevented income taxes from rising for most households, but many store executives blamed the uncertainty for a slowdown in sales in December. In November 2012, sales were up 4.7 over the year ago period, but rose only 2.4 percent in December.

Fears and what not, unspecified factors that will blamed on the obstructionist GOP and the all-out evil Tea Party. Really?

If I was a retailer, I would be more concerned about the increasing poverty rate (up 6.6 million plus under Obama-- a record), record high number of people out of the workforce (up 10 million under Obama), decreasing household income of Americans which we all have experienced under Obama. As people have less money, they spend less. I know it's a hard concept to understand. And then you factor in the government forcing you to spend a huge chunk of change on spiralling health care insurance...

Well, it's all the GOP's and conservatives' fault. Because they're racist.