The most hyped economy of all time has back down to earth. After a modest Holiday shopping season improvement, reality has return for the Obama Boom! Jobless claims are now back up to 399,999.

The number of people applying for weekly unemployment benefits spiked last week, largely because companies let go of thousands of workers after the holiday season.

The Labor Department said Thursday that applications jumped by 24,000 to a seasonally adjusted 399,000, the most in six weeks.

That followed three months of steady declines that brought applications to the lowest level in more than three years.

The much hyped Christmas shopping season, was just that. Retail sales in December only rose .01%.

Retail sales rose at the weakest pace in seven months in December as consumers pulled back late in the holiday shopping season, cutting purchases at department stores and spending less on electronic gadgets.

Total retail sales increased 0.1 percent after rising by an upwardly revised 0.4 percent in November, the Commerce Department said on Thursday.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast retail sales climbing 0.3 percent last month.

The upward revision for November sales suggests consumers likely frontloaded their holiday shopping. The government had initially estimated retail sales gained 0.2 percent in November.

The media will cover up these anemic numbers. After all, can’t ruin the Obama Boom myth in an election year!