Congressman Jack Kingston - First District of Georgia

Washington, Oct 5 - High unemployment persisted in the month of September according to a Department of Labor report which found the economy created a lackluster 114,000 jobs, falling short of the 150,000 needed just to accommodate population growth.

The unemployment rate, which is a separate measure determined by a household survey, dipped slightly to 7.8 percent.  The declining unemployment rate can largely be attributed to more and more Americans giving up looking for work altogether.  If the same number of people were in the workforce today as when President Obama took office, the unemployment rate would be 11 percent.

“When he campaigned for his so-called stimulus, President Obama promised unemployment would be at 5.5 percent today,” said Congressman Jack Kingston (GA-1).  “Three and a half years later, it is clear that trickle down government is not working.  Joe Biden said it best: the middle class ‘has been buried the last four years.’  It’s time to dig out the middle class from failed policies.”

Kingston is concerned that failure to change course in economic policies could lead such high unemployment to be the new normal.  He points to a recent survey conducted by National Journal which found that a majority of Americans now define getting ahead as not falling behind.

“Unless we turn this ship around, we risk redefining the American economy has one of high unemployment and stagnant underemployment,” Kingston said.  “That is not a future I want for my children and it is not the future I want for our great country.  We can do better.  We should put our differences aside and come together for the good of our country.”

The ‘fiscal cliff’ – a combination of massive tax increases and arbitrary spending cuts set to take effect in January – is increasingly identified by economists as a leading factor contributing to the uncertainty gripping the nation’s economy.  To date, only the House has acted to prevent the tax increase and to replace the cuts with targeted spending reforms and reductions.

“The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office tell us the fiscal cliff would cost another 2 million American jobs,” said Kingston.  “It’s time for the President and the Senate to step up to the plate and help us avert this disaster.”