The U.S. economy added 288,000 jobs in March, pushing the unemployment rate to 6.3 percent, its lowest rate in more than five years. This is good news in many circles, but not any with Fifth District Republican Congressman Robert Hurt in them.
“While I am encouraged that today’s jobs report finds that our economy added jobs last month, we also saw a number of discouraging economic indicators this week,” Hurt said in a statement. “The jobs report shows that over 800,000 people dropped out of our labor force in April, reducing the labor force participation rate to a 35-year low of 62.8%. We learned that our GDP grew by a sluggish 0.1% in the first quarter of 2014, and a new study came out finding that china is poised to overtake the United States as the world’s largest economy, a position the U.S. has held since 1872. Many communities in the Fifth District continue to experience unemployment rates well above the national average, which also remains unacceptably high.
“Our rate of recovery from the economic downturn is not sufficiently robust, and we are falling behind. The House of Representatives continues to pass pro-growth proposals that would jumpstart our economy and get us back on track, but the President and the Senate must join in our effort. It is my hope that we are able to come together in a bipartisan way to bring solutions and good-paying jobs to Virginians and Americans, and I remain committed to continuing to work toward this crucial goal.”
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Chris Graham
