The Other McCain

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Obama Talks Jobs, While Unemployment Stays at 9.7 Percent

Posted on | April 2, 2010 | 8 Comments

As if merely talking about jobs were the same as doing something about the unemployment problem:

It’s the first Friday of the month, and you know what that means — a new jobs report.
As the White House and its Republican critics wait to see if the unemployment rate of 9.7 percent rises or falls, President Obama plans to fly to Charlotte, N.C., to discuss his jobs agenda.
In addition to a speech, Obama also meets with employees at Celgard, a battery technology manufacturer that is hiring people through a stimulus bill grant.

Right. And when the stimulus grant runs out . . .? Never mind. As it turns out, the unemployment rate is unchanged:

The American economy added 162,000 jobs in March, the Labor Department reported Friday, while the unemployment rate held steady at 9.7 percent.
While the numbers got a lift from the government’s hiring of census workers, private employers added 123,000 jobs in March, including 17,000 jobs. Some 40,000 temporary service jobs were added, while health care added 37,000. . . .
The economy must create 100,000 jobs each month just to absorb new entrants into the labor force, according to many projections. That sustained level of growth may not come until later this year, economists said, making pervasive unemployment a virtual certainty for some time to come.
Indeed, the government predicts the jobless rate will average 9.8 percent next year and 8.4 percent in 2012 before falling to 5 percent in 2016. . . .

That’s what “the government predicts,” you see. And we all know the government is so good at predicting the economic future. Just ask Moody’s.

Category: Barack Obama, Economics

Comments

8 Responses to “Obama Talks Jobs, While Unemployment Stays at 9.7 Percent”

  1. McGehee
    April 2nd, 2010 @ 3:47 pm

    I’d be tempted to say that his talking about the economy has the advantage of not doing damage to it, which actual attempts to implement policy would do — but let’s not forget how he managed to talk the economy into a full-blown panic when he was still just president-select.

  2. McGehee
    April 2nd, 2010 @ 10:47 am

    I’d be tempted to say that his talking about the economy has the advantage of not doing damage to it, which actual attempts to implement policy would do — but let’s not forget how he managed to talk the economy into a full-blown panic when he was still just president-select.

  3. Roxeanne de Luca
    April 2nd, 2010 @ 8:00 pm

    But you missed this (although it was buried in the article):

    Because so many of the jobs created were part-time jobs for people who really wanted full-time work, the broader measure of unemployment and underemployment ticked up, to 16.9 percent, from 16.8 percent the previous month. And the number of people out of work for at least 27 weeks increased by 414,000 last month, to 6.5 million.

    So what this is telling me is that we have engineers who are knocking on people’s doors for the Census, lawyers who are waiting tables, accountants who are doing part-time data entry, and other highly skilled people who are underemployed.

    Underemployment and temporary employment are not just a problem for the person; America cannot remain a strong nation when 1/6th of its talent is not utilised.

    Hell will freeze over before Barack Obama, who has not spent a second in a wealth-producing private sector, understands that.

  4. Roxeanne de Luca
    April 2nd, 2010 @ 3:00 pm

    But you missed this (although it was buried in the article):

    Because so many of the jobs created were part-time jobs for people who really wanted full-time work, the broader measure of unemployment and underemployment ticked up, to 16.9 percent, from 16.8 percent the previous month. And the number of people out of work for at least 27 weeks increased by 414,000 last month, to 6.5 million.

    So what this is telling me is that we have engineers who are knocking on people’s doors for the Census, lawyers who are waiting tables, accountants who are doing part-time data entry, and other highly skilled people who are underemployed.

    Underemployment and temporary employment are not just a problem for the person; America cannot remain a strong nation when 1/6th of its talent is not utilised.

    Hell will freeze over before Barack Obama, who has not spent a second in a wealth-producing private sector, understands that.

  5. Roxeanne de Luca
    April 2nd, 2010 @ 8:03 pm

    Stupid question:

    The economy has shown signs of renewal in recent months with the help of significant government spending. Analysts generally say they believe the recovery will endure even in the absence of stimulus programs.

    Is this coming from the same brain trusts who told us that car sales would continue to remain strong after Cash for Clunkers ended?

  6. Roxeanne de Luca
    April 2nd, 2010 @ 3:03 pm

    Stupid question:

    The economy has shown signs of renewal in recent months with the help of significant government spending. Analysts generally say they believe the recovery will endure even in the absence of stimulus programs.

    Is this coming from the same brain trusts who told us that car sales would continue to remain strong after Cash for Clunkers ended?

  7. Brooklyn Evans
    May 5th, 2010 @ 10:57 pm

    the unemployment rate today is a bit higher because of the recession but hopefully the economy would recover soon…”

  8. Brooklyn Evans
    May 5th, 2010 @ 5:57 pm

    the unemployment rate today is a bit higher because of the recession but hopefully the economy would recover soon…”