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Obama signs unemployment benefits extension as national jobless rate breaks above 10%
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Within hours after the Obama administration’s Labor Department announced that the national unemployment rate now stands at 10.2%, and that the American economy suffered a net loss of 190,000 jobs in September, President Obama today signed the bill extending unemployment benefits to a maximum of 99 weeks. Just a week after Obama claimed that his administration’s stimulus legislation has saved or created up to a million jobs, nationwide unemployment hit the highest level in a quarter century. As he signed the bill, President Obama said, “I won’t rest until America prospers once again.”
House Minority Leader John Boehner ripped administration policies as soon as the Labor Department monthly report was released. “Today’s report is yet another reminder that American families and small businesses are still struggling, and the White House response is falling short. A jobless recovery and double digit unemployment are not what the American people were promised.”
Wisconsin Senator Russell Feingold says he will introduce a jobs tax credit bill to prime the employment pump, and Rhode Island Senator Jack Reed is proposing a “work-share” law similar to those in effect in 17 states, which would allow businesses to avoid layoffs by cutting work hours and using unemployment benefit funds to make up a portion of the cuts.
House Ways and Means Income Security Subcommittee Chairman Jim McDermott proposes to introduce a bill before year end extending unemployment benefits through all of 2010, at a cost of up to 85 billion. Remarking about the immense cost of such a benefit extension, Congressman Kevin Brady of Texas remarked that the proposal “begs the question: ‘Where are the Jobs?’ While long term unemployed workers appreciate the additional unemployment benefit help in the bill, what they really want are jobs.” McDermott responded “We might as well do what needs to be done. Some of my colleagues are hoping the tooth fairy will suddenly turn the economy around and we’ll all be better. I don’t think it’s going to come back that quickly.”
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