Not since October 2001 has unemployment been so low. Then, it was 5.4 percent. Now, the jobless rate sits at 5.6 percent, and it’s falling.
The jobless rate fell 0.1 percentage point last month to the lowest level since October 2001, when it was 5.4 percent, the Labor Department said Friday. January’s rate matched the 5.6 percent posted in January 2002.
But the economic good news doesn’t stop there. Over 100,000 jobs were added last month, the largest since December of 2000. White House press secretary Scott McClellan puts the news into perspective.
“Since August of last year, there have been 366,000 new jobs created,” McClellan said. “The unemployment rate of 5.6 percent is well below the average of the 70s, 80s and 90s. … Today’s report is another sign that the economy is continuing to grow strong and that jobs are being created.”
Since presidential elections are famous for deciding themselves on matters economic, Democrats have some explaining to do about the promise of the Bush economy.