Texas really might already be out of the recession...

Fed Chair Ben Bernanke has been going around saying that the recession might already be over. Another Texas survey showed increased confidence (link). Excerpt follows...

Texas employee confidence increased in August after a two-point dip the month before, according to the latest Spherion Employment Report.

The Texas Employee Confidence Index rose nearly two points to 53.7 — a 12-month record high, according to the company.

Other findings included:

• Twenty-eight percent of Texas workers believe the economy is getting weaker, down 19 percentage points from July.

• The number of people who don’t think they will lose their jobs was up 4 percent to 80 percent from July.

• Sixty percent of workers believe it is unlikely they will look for a new job in the next 12 months, up from 56 percent in July.

• Sixty percent of Texas workers are confident in the future of their current employer, down 10 percentage points from the previous month.

“Although the Texas unemployment rate registered below the U.S. jobless rate, workers continue to harbor mixed emotions,” Kim Lockhart, regional vice president for Spherion in Texas, said.

“A prime example of this uncertainty is illustrated by the fact that more workers reported confidence in their own job security, but did not have the same sentiment toward the future of their current employers.”

There is also a Brookings Institute study showing that some Texas cities are indeed out of the recession already (link). If the economy goes really really sour, Rick will have to rely on social issues to carry the day. If things still are perceived to be better in Texas than in the rest of the country then Rick wins easily with or without social conservative voters.