The May Jobs Report - US Economy Remains Remarkably Strong, Republicans Are Trying to Ruin It

While Biden Is Working to Keep the Economy Strong, Rs are Pushing Us Into Recession and Default

Friday, May 5th - The May BLS jobs report is out and it’s another good one - 253,000 net new jobs! With this new data my monthly jobs tracker clocks in at:

• 33.8m jobs - 16 years of Clinton, Obama

• 12.7m jobs - 26 months of Biden

• 1.9m jobs - 16 years of Bush, Bush and Trump

Biden's 12.7m jobs is 6 times as many jobs as were created in the 16 years of the last 3 Republican Presidencies, combined.  It is also millions more than were created in the entirety of any of their three individual Presidencies.  Many millions more. Since 1989 and the end of the Cold War, the US has seen 49 million new jobs created.  Remarkably 47 million of those 49 million jobs were created under Democratic Presidents, 96%. We’ve put some of the data which follows into a Twitter thread for those of you who still share on Twitter.

What this data tells us is that since this new age of globalization began in 1989, a modern and forward-looking Democratic Party has repeatedly seen strong economic growth on its watch.  Republican Presidents, on the other hand, have overseen three consecutive recessions - the last two, severe. The contrast in performance here is very stark. It is not a stretch to state that the GOP’s economic track record over the past 30 years has been among the worst in the history of the United States.  

The Biden economic track record, on the other hand, has been very strong:

• GDP growth over 3%, 3 times what it was under Trump

• 6 times as many Biden jobs as last 3 GOP Presidents combined

• best COVID recovery in G7

• lowest unemployment rate in peacetime economy since WWII

• lowest poverty/uninsured rates ever

• very elevated wage gains/new business starts

• Almost 2 job openings per unemployed person

• real earnings up in 2022

• the deficit went up every year under Trump and has come down every year under Biden

• domestic oil production on track to set records in 2023

• historic investments in our future prosperity (infrastructure, CHIPs, climate, health care)

Look at the jobs created per month over these Presidencies - Rs at just 10k per month over 16 years.  Biden is running at 50 times that so far.  Yes, 50x! The jobs created just this month - 253,000 - is TWO YEARS of job growth under these last 3 GOP Presidents.

Under Biden the US has had the best recovery from COVID of any advanced economy in the world:

Under Biden the economy is growing at 3 times the rate it did under Trump:

The bottom line is that Democratic policies have repeatedly been able to make globalization work for the American people in this new and challenging age.  GOP policies have repeatedly failed to deliver, as a national party Republicans have repeatedly failed to do their part. 

It is a core belief of mine that the current radicalization of the GOP is intimately linked to its repeated failure to handle the challenges of the post-Cold War era.  The rigid ideological approach of the modern GOP has left it unable to govern in a time of rapid change; and those repeated failures have left many Republicans angry, reactionary and willing to do the unthinkable to stay in or regain power.  The modern GOP has no answers for many of the most important challenges America faces today, and rather than modernizing, adapting, as all institutions must in a time of change, the GOP has decided to fight the future by rigging the system to remain in power while the country and its people drift from their narrow grasp. 

It is why Democrats must fight so hard to prevent Republicans from once again cheating their way into power, and establishing a sustained period of minority rule.  It is not just a betrayal of the great American experiment, but it will guarantee, as the data here strongly argues, a period of extended decline as much-needed progress on the big challenges we face will be further delayed. 

Consider what Kevin McCarthy is trying to do to the American economy right now, with the limited power he has. This week’s Economist writes that McCarthy’s plans would force American to “face either a sovereign debt default or swingeing cuts to state spending. Either outcome would be devastating to global markets."

Here are the Republicans once again trying to push America into recession and financial duress. It’s what they do when they are in power.

This argument – about the success Democrats have achieved through modernization, and the failures of the GOP for their refusal to do so – is at the very core of my most important presentation, With Democrats Things Get Better.  The next live showing of With Dems is this Tuesday at 1pm EST. You can learn more and RSVP here. With Dems is new and updated with each showing so even if you saw it a few months ago it will be new and fresh.

Finally, I believe our collective overarching message priority this year is to get into positive territory against the Republicans on the economy. I talk about why this is so important in a new Short Take video. Given this strong track record going all the back to 1989 we shouldn’t be losing the economic debate to these guys. It is critical that we work together in 2023 to establish this basic contrast:

Dems = growth, lower deficits, progress for workers and families

Rs = recession, higher deficits, American decline

Joe Biden has a been a good President. The country is better off today.

Keep working hard everyone - Simon