Washington, D.C. — Today, Dr. David Madland, Director of the American Worker Project at the Center for American Progress, had the following reaction to January’s unemployment figures:
The evidence clearly shows that the nation’s economy is on the right course. The recovery plan the Obama administration installed from the day it took office has now produced 23 straight months of private-sector job growth. But we cannot afford to be complacent, and we cannot turn back to the policies that got us into this mess. Even our modest momentum could be lost if government policies go in the wrong direction or Europe’s financial problems spill over to the United States. As a first step, policymakers should ensure we keep the recovery we have by passing a full-year extension of unemployment benefits and the payroll tax cut. To sustain economic growth will require concerted efforts to rebuild the middle class, who are the real drivers of economic growth.
To speak to Madland about the monthly jobs report, contact Katie Peters at [email protected] or 202.741.6285.
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