It is becoming harder and harder for the GOP to bash Obama on the economy. We gained another 162,000 jobs in July.
From BLS:
Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 162,000 in July, and the unemployment rate edged down to 7.4 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment rose in retail trade, food services and drinking places, financial activities, and wholesale trade. (more…)
Better. Much better than I expected. We need much more, but this is better. Note that the jobs numbers for September and October were revised up.
From MarketWatch:
The U.S. gained 120,000 jobs in November and the unemployment rate fell to 8.6% from 9.0%, the Labor Department said Friday. The government also revised jobs data for October and September to show that 72,000 additional jobs were created. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch had forecast a 125,000 increase in employment in November and no change in the jobless rate. About half of the drop in the unemployment rate stemmed from a decline in the number of workers in the labor force. Hiring in October was revised up to 100,000 from 80,000 and the job gains in September were revised up to 210,00 from 158,000. In November, companies in the private sector hired 140,000 workers, with retailers adding 50,000. Government cut 20,000 jobs, the Labor Department said. Average hourly earnings fell 0.1% last month to $23.18 and the workweek was unchanged at 34.3 hours. The broader U6 unemployment rate dropped to 15.6% from 16.2% in October.
Sorry about the sound quality. (Agnes, my fill-in producer, clearly doesn’t love me.) This time we cover the jobless rate, which has hit a 16-year high. Don’t forget our being told that the “fundamentals of our economy are strong.” The automakers have been turned away so that they may go back and do their homework. A federal judge has ordered the Bush administration to release five Algerian nationals.
My special guests are Greg Dworkin of the Daily Kos, who is a pediatric pulmonologist. We go over health care reform and then I switch gears and talk with local author Cecil Bothwell about his latest book,
Pure Bunkum – Reporting on the Life and Crimes of Buncombe County Sheriff Bobby Medford
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