So now the unemployment stats are legit?

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President Donald Trump is beside himself with how well the economy is doing and boasts about the nation’s unemployment rate.

Though the Bureau of Labor Statistics tells us unemployment has been steadily declining since 2010 and was 4.6% in November 2016, Trump is taking sole credit for the current 4.1% unemployment figure.

I’m not surprised. Actually, I’d be shocked if Trump didn’t take all the credit.

But does anyone remember what Trump said about unemployment statistics before he was elected? The Washington Post kept track. Here are a few highlights:

  • Aug. 11, 2015: “Then you hear there’s a 5.4 percent unemployment. It’s really — if you add it up, it’s probably 40 percent if you think about it.”
  • Oct. 11, 2015: “Nobody has jobs. … It is not a real economy. It is a phony set of numbers. They cooked the books.”
  • Feb. 9, 2016: “Don’t believe those phony numbers when you hear 4.9 and 5 percent unemployment. As high as 35 — as in fact, I heard recently, 42 percent.”
  • Aug. 8, 2016: “The 5 percent figure is one of the biggest hoaxes in modern politics.”
  • Dec. 8, 2016: “The unemployment number, as you know, is totally fiction.”

What did Trump say during his first State of the Union address?

“Since the election, we have created 2.4 million new jobs, including 200,000 new jobs in manufacturing alone. After years of wage stagnation, we are finally seeing rising wages.

“Unemployment claims have hit a 45-year low. African-American unemployment stands at the lowest rate ever recorded, and Hispanic American unemployment has also reached the lowest levels in history.”

Not a word about “cooking the books,” the words he used in October 2015.

Maybe the unemployment rate is not as accurate as it could be, but as far as I can tell, the formula for calculating it has remained constant over the years. So, what’s Trump talking about—the books were cooked all along, but now the statistics make sense?

Life is a lot easier when you create your own reality.

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Jack D’Aurora writes for Considerthisbyjd.com

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Also published on Medium.

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Comments

  1. Bill Lyons  February 12, 2018

    Trump is convinced that no matter what he says, his base is going to believe him. He is like a preacher to them. He does not speak to the majority of Americans because he surely must know that they can see through his twisting of facts and lies, unless he really is delusional.

    reply
  2. Frank Wilson  February 12, 2018

    Of course they know President Trump held the economic data in very low regard when he was Candidate Trump and now is taking credit for the booming economy.

    1. However, his base is so invested in Him that they are able to separate his words and behavior from the Man they all helped elect. They believed Him when He told the crowds at His rallies that only HE could solve our nation’s problems.

    2. A good percentage of Trump’s support comes from voters who have deliberately chosen to ignore the chaos coming out of the White House. It is to President Trump’s advantage that the most watched Cable Network functions as a cheerleader for the administration. That network either ignores the presidential blunders or they emphasize alternative information.

    3. The answer is to return the Democrats to power in 2018 but the White Males who rule in this administration will fight hard to prevent that from happening.

    4. President Trump cannot exist in a world that the values the rule of law and an evidence based reality; therefore, he has created his fact free universe that allows him to make blatantly inaccurate statements every day.

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    • Jim Sanfillipo  February 12, 2018

      Well said Jack. Bert liked it so much he called me today to ask if I had read it.

      reply
  3. Steven Spring  February 12, 2018

    Great article, Jack!!! One lesson I have learned during the past 2 years is to never believe a single word this “president” says. And sadly, it seems you cannot believe nearly everyone associated with this administration either. As for the unemployment rate, I’m no statistician, however the actual rate is probably double the current rate, if not higher considering that those folks who have given up looking for work are no longer included in the rate, nor are individuals working part-time jobs because they cannot find full-time employment.

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    • Dan  February 14, 2018

      That’s probably why the unemployment number is closer to real now than in the past 10 yrs. Those who once stopped looking for work are now getting employed. No matter what the rate, the perception of things has resulted in a positive vibe throughout our country. If the president has the American people in mind when running the country, it wouldn’t matter who or what party is in office…problem is, both parties are so screwed up and self-centered and selfish they can’t and won’t look out for our best interests

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      • jdaurora@behallaw.com  February 14, 2018

        I agree with you regarding how politicians think about themselves first and the American people second, but I don’t agree with you about unemployment statistics being more accurate today then they were a few years back. I disagree because the methodology for calculating the rate has remained the same. Stated another way, just as there were people a few years back who gave up looking for work and were not counted as unemployed, the same holds true today.

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