Obama Blows Republicans Out Of The Water With Fastest Job Growth Pace Since Clinton

Another jobs report, another historic success for the Obama economy.

According to the White House,”Our economy has now added 8.0 million jobs over the past three years, a pace that has not been exceeded since 2000. And while the economy added jobs at a somewhat slower pace in August than in recent months, the unemployment rate fell to 5.1 percent—its lowest level since April 2008—and the labor force participation rate remained stable. Our businesses have now added 13.1 million jobs over 66 straight months, extending the longest streak on record. In addition, hourly earnings for American workers continued to rise.”

The Department of Labor announced in the August jobs report that the economy added 173,000 jobs. Businesses added 140,000 jobs. Over the past three months, an average of 221,000 jobs per month have been added due to upward revisions.

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This is the 66th consecutive month of private sector job growth under President Obama, for a total of more than 13 million jobs. The longest running stretch of private sector job growth in our history.

That’s a lot of private sector growth, an area Republicans have historically claimed expertise over.

The unemployment rate dropped to 5.1 percent, the lowest unemployment rate since April 2008. We are now at what the Fed deems “full employment”. To make this even more encouraging, August numbers are usually revised up.

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 173,000 in August, and the unemployment rate edged down to 5.1 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Job gains occurred in health care and social assistance and in financial activities. Manufacturing and mining lost jobs.

Democratic Leader Pelosi urged Congress to do more for the people, saying in a statement, “Our economy continues to make progress, adding another month to the longest uninterrupted period of private sector job growth in American history. However, it is clear more can and must be done to create good-paying jobs and grow the paychecks of America’s hard-working families.”

Part of what Pelosi might be referring to is that the unemployment rate declines for whites doesn’t mean all is well:

Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rate for whites declined to 4.4 percent in August. The rates for adult men (4.7 percent), adult women (4.7 percent), teenagers (16.9 percent), blacks (9.5 percent), Asians (3.5 percent), and Hispanics (6.6 percent) showed little change in August.

Meanwhile Republicans continue to play games with business, continuing to block reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank, refusing to pass a real jobs bill, denying investments in our infrastructure, and continuing on with their sequester temper tantrum. There’s even word on the street that Republicans are looking to another government shutdown, seeing as their previous efforts in shutting down the government harmed the country so much and cost so much.

Pelosi pointed out that there are only 12 legislative days left before the budget deadline. If Republicans stay true to form, they will stop at nothing, no matter the collateral damage, in order to empower their party to make unilateral decisions that help the 1%.

It took seven years for the unemployment rate to recover from the Bush stock market crash and related Great Recession.

For every inch forward we take, Republicans rock the boat and poke at the leak until we take on more water. In spite of them, the Obama economy has made history yet again, and in the private sector to boot. Expect more wailing and caterwauling from the backseat drivers who would rather America failed than see President Obama get any acknowledgement for anything.

Sarah Jones

Listen to Sarah on the PoliticusUSA Pod on The Daily newsletter podcast here.

Sarah has been credentialed to cover President Barack Obama, then VP Joe Biden, 2016 Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, and exclusively interviewed Speaker Nancy Pelosi multiple times and exclusively covered her first home appearance after the first impeachment of then President Donald Trump.

Sarah is two-time Telly award winning video producer and a member of the Society of Professional Journalists.

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