Daily Dose of Progress: 11-18-08

ABC News reports that President-elect Obama “has decided to name former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers the director of the National Economic Council, essentially the president’s senior economic adviser.” Also today, Obama named his campaign spokesperson Robert Gibbs as White House press secretary and Ellen Moran of Emily’s List as communications director.

Yesterday, the struggling Freedom’s Watch released an attack ad against Georgia’s Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Jim Martin, saying that he “failed to look out for Georgia’s families.” “First he actually helped block stiffer penalties for drunk drivers,” warns the voice in the ad, which echoes previous GOP ads. “And then, Martin voted against tougher sentences [...]

On Thursday, Georgia’s Department of Labor announced that the state’s unemployment levels rose to 7 percent in October, the highest in 16 years; approximately 43,093 unemployed Georgians are looking for work. That same day, Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-GA), who is locked in a tough run-off election battle with Democrat Jim Martin, gave a campaign speech [...]

The LA Times reports that California’s unemployment rate soared to a 14-year high in October, hitting 8.2%. The most populous state “shed 26,400 people from its payroll last month, raising the total number of lost jobs to 101,300 since October 2007.” Analysts predict “the situation is about to get worse.” The state’s rate ranks third [...]

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) traveled Friday to Iowa, “a state that is pivotal to a presidential campaign, in a trip that has heightened speculation that [he] is planning a presidential bid in 2012.” Jindal tamped down the speculation, stating, “I’m not running for president.” The highlight of Jindal’s visit will be tonight’s keynote address [...]