White House, GOP Respond to Jobs Report
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SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — The latest jobs report is, “further evidence that the economy is continuing to heal” but that faster growth is needed to put more Americans back to work, the White House says.
Reacting to Friday morning’s better-than-expected figures, Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers Alan Krueger wrote in a White House blog that, “it is critical that we continue the economic policies that are helping us to dig our way out of the deep hole that was caused by the recession that began at the end of 2007.”
Krueger points to the need to extend the payroll tax cut through the end of the year and to adopt the agenda outlined by the president in his State of the Union address.
The unemployment rate in January fell 0.2 percentage point to 8.3 percent and the economy created 243,000 jobs, the Labor Department reported. “Nonetheless, we need faster growth to put more Americans back to work,” Krueger writes.
The White House notes that unemployment numbers can be volatile and stresses that “it is important not to read too much into any one monthly report; nevertheless, the trend in job market indicators over recent months is an encouraging sign,” Krueger writes.
The unemployment rate, however, does not take into account the millions of people who have given up on finding work, or whose unemployment benefits have expired.
Republicans were quick to respond to the report as well, saying that while the news is indeed positive, “Our economy still isn’t creating jobs the way it should be,” according to House Speaker John Boehner.
“There’s welcome news in this latest jobs report as more Americans found work last month, but the fact is our unemployment rate is still far too high. Our economy still isn’t creating jobs the way it should be and that’s why we need a new approach.
“Instead of more of the same policies that simply haven’t worked as advertised, the House has passed nearly 30 bipartisan jobs bills focused on removing government barriers to private-sector job growth,” Boehner said. “These bills reflect proposals backed by the president’s jobs council and, in many cases, the president himself. We can’t be satisfied with an unemployment rate mired above eight percent for years on end; we must do better. President Obama should call on Senate Democrats to take immediate action on our bipartisan jobs bills, and together we can create a better environment for private-sector job growth.”
GOP presidential frontrunner Mitt Romney said: “We welcome the fact that jobs were created and unemployment declined. Unfortunately, these numbers cannot hide the fact that President Obama’s policies have prevented a true economic recovery. We can do better. Last week, we learned that the economy grew only 1.7% in 2011, the slowest growth in a non-recession year since the end of World War II. As a result, the percentage of Americans in the job market continues to decline and is now at a level not seen since the early 1980s.”
Romney underlined the shortcomings in the Labor Department’s math: “Nearly 24 million Americans remain unemployed, underemployed, or have just stopped looking for work. Long-term unemployment remains at record levels. I am running for president because I have the vision and experience to help rebuild the economy and put us on a path toward greater prosperity for all Americans.”
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