Legal Commentary

151K Jobs Added In October; Unemployment at 9.6%

By Big Tent Democrat

Better news:

The economy generated a net gain in jobs for the first time in five months in October, as businesses stepped up their painfully slow pace of hiring.But the unemployment rate, measured by a separate survey of households, remained stuck at 9.6 percent for the third straight month.

The Labor Department said Friday its survey of employers showed a net gain of 151,000 jobs last month, the first increase since May. Private employers hired 159,000 workers, the best since April.

While this level of job growth will not lower the unemployment rate, at least it stops the bleeding. It also puts the the incoming GOP Congress on the spot. The Obama Administration has stopped the bleeding (or so the numbers suggest) -- slashing government spending will almost certainly accelerate unemployment - if in the next 2 years unemployment goes up, it will be on the GOP's watch. Dems and Obama need to state clearly their views of what needs to be done and then when the GOP prevails on the policy, the GOP will own the result.

Speaking for me only

Full post as published by TalkLeft on November 05, 2010 (boomark / email).