Those Six Million Jobs Biden Added? Republicans Say That's 'A Disaster'

The economy added 210,000 jobs in November and the unemployment rate dropped significantly, according to the federal jobs report released on Friday.

But House Republicans who cheered comparable numbers as a "booming economy" under the last administration claim these were a "disaster" for President Joe Biden.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate dropped from 4.6 percent in October to just 4.2 percent last month — one of the lowest rates recorded in modern history. The bureau also noted that its job growth estimates for the previous two months have been off, undercounting the number of jobs created by 86,000.

Noting that the preliminary November job growth was below what some economists had been predicting, House Republicans seized on the report to suggest it was a great failure for the Biden administration.

Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy called it "another massive miss," tweeting that "Joe Biden's economic policies can be described the same as his presidency—a total disappointment."

"Joe Biden's economy is a DISASTER. And Democrats are doubling down on their failed tax and spend policies," House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik wrote.

"Disappointing, but unsurprising," opined Minnesota Rep. Tom Emmer, who chairs the National Republican Congressional Committee.

Oklahoma Rep. Kevin Hern called the "dismal November jobs report" proof that "Joe Biden's economy is in shambles."

"Anyone surprised?" mocked Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs.

But just a few years ago, House Republicans cheered similar and even smaller job growth under then-President Donald Trump as "strong numbers."

A May 2018 tweet by Emmer hailed "164k jobs created" as showing "the U.S. economy continues to grow!"

Biggs, who ridiculed the November jobs report, pointed to 250,000 new jobs in October 2018 as showing "that the U.S Economy is booming!"

Indeed the official House GOP Twitter feed used the hashtag "#BetterOffNow" in 2018 to credit those jobs to Trump's "booming economy that's built for long-term growth."

That did not pan out. Thanks in part to the COVID-19 pandemic and Trump's response, the nation lost about three million jobs over his single term in office.

Since taking over in January, Biden has reversed that and added close to six million jobs. He has significantly reduced the unemployment rate from 6.3 percent in January.

Biden has attributed much of this progress to his $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, which every congressional Republican voted against.

In November, House Republicans unanimously opposed passing Biden's $1.75 trillion Build Back Better jobs package, even though experts say it will create and support hundreds of thousands of clean energy and climate jobs over the next decade.

On Friday, Rep. Kevin Brady (R-TX) — the top GOP member on the House Ways and Means Committee — suggested that because of Biden's "miserable jobs report," the Senate "ought to suspend $5T [sic] BBB until @POTUS demonstrates he can heal economy, lower inflation, get Americans back to work."

But House Budget Committee Chair John Yarmuth disagreed. The Kentucky Democrat wrote Friday:

6 million jobs created since the start of the Biden administration. Unemployment down to 4.2%. The #AmericanRescuePlan and hardworking Americans are fueling our steady economic recovery. Looking forward to passing the #BuildBackBetter Act to kick things into an even higher gear.

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.