E-mail updates
Follow on Twitter
Subscribe to RSSUpdated Friday Dec. 7, 8:45am ET Democratic senators said Thursday that the economy is still weak enough that it needs more federal stimulus spending as part of any year-ending fiscal deal with Republicans.
Senate Democratic Policy Committee chairman Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., told reporters, “I believe you need a stimulus. It could be a payroll tax (cut), it could be something else, but you need some kind of ‘oomph’ to the economy in this first year, particularly now that the statistics show it’s moving slowly.”
On Friday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that non-farm payroll employment increased by 146,000 in November, while the unemployment rate went from 7.9 percent in October to 7.7 percent last month.
"The number of unemployed persons, at 12.0 million, changed little," the BLS report said. The number of long-term unemployed, those Americans who were jobless for 27 weeks or more, was little changed at 4.8 million in November.
And the number of people in the labor force -- either working or actively looking for work -- dropped by 350,000.
Jacquelyn Martin / AP
Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., right, accompanied by fellow Senate Democrats, gestures during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Dec. 6, 2012, to discuss efforts to "boost the economy and prevent Americans from abruptly losing their jobless benefits at the end of the year."
Schumer and other Democrats said at a Capitol press conference Thursday that an extension of emergency unemployment insurance benefits must be part of any year-ending "fiscal cliff" deal.
The Democratic senators cited the need to spur a sluggish economy, which had a 7.9 percent jobless rate in October. An extended unemployment benefit “produces a major economic stimulus,” said Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I. His state has a 10.4 percent unemployment rate.
“We’re all talking about a stimulus. How do we get the economy moving? This is the best stimulus there is,” Schumer said.
He and other Democrats gave a textbook Keynesian argument for continued unemployment payments to those who might otherwise lose them at year end. People who get unemployment checks “are going to the local stores, they are increasing demand,” Reed said.
The Democrats said the heated, weeks-long debate on the fiscal cliff of spending cuts and tax increases seemed somewhat unreal and theoretical to some of their hard-pressed constituents.
While congressional leaders wrangle over the fiscal cliff, “two million Americans are now looking over a real cliff,” Reed said.
President Barack Obama headed to Virginia where he reminded the public that if the fiscal cliff isn't averted, taxes will increase on 98 percent of Americans next year. The Daily Rundown's Chuck Todd reports.
Schumer said, “Many of the elements of the ‘fiscal cliff’ are abstract concepts to struggling middle-class families, (but) unemployment benefits are not abstract.”
“If there is an agreement on the fiscal cliff, unemployment insurance must be included,” Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said. And “if there’s not an agreement reached, we must extend unemployment separately.”
He added, “We must not leave here for the holidays until we extend unemployment insurance.”
Asked how this call for more stimulus spending was consistent with the idea of reducing budget deficits and the growing burden of federal debt, Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., said, “Not all spending is created equal.”
Asked the same question later, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid cited a story he’d heard Thursday morning on National Public Radio which said the European Union was “concerned about all their austerity,” that is, the reduction in European governments’ spending at a time of persistently high unemployment.
In the tense negotiations back-and-forth between President Barack Obama and Congressional Republicans, the chances of cliff-diving appear to be less likely, but there's still no hard deal on the table yet. Former communications director for the Blue Dog Democrats Kristen Hawn and David Winston, a veteran Republican pollster, discuss.
Reid argued that fiscal restraint and short-term stimulus aren’t mutually exclusive: “You can do both…. There are many, many things you can do to reduce debt, but still have (a) simulative aspect.”
According to the Congressional Budget Office, unemployment insurance benefits totaled $94 billion in fiscal year 2012, a substantial increase over the $33 billion paid out in fiscal year 2007 before the economy toppled into the recession. The total cost of jobless benefits over the past five years has been $520 billion.
The CBO said fully extending the current Emergency Unemployment Compensation program and temporary provisions of the Extended Benefit program for one year would cost $30 billion.
Democratic senators said they want the money spent on unemployment to not be offset by spending cuts elsewhere in the federal budget. “An offset, I think, is unnecessary and its bad economics,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn.
At times the Democrats' portrayal of the economy Thursday sounded like the gloomy picture painted by Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney. Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who caucuses with the Democrats said, “Sometimes, maybe especially here inside the Beltway, we forget that this terrible, terrible recession continues in many, many parts of the country. While official unemployment is 7.9 percent real unemployment – counting those people who have given up looking for work and those people who are working 20 hours and they want to be working 40 hours – is closer to 15 percent.”
Harkin told reporters after the press conference, “I don’t see us getting out of this high unemployment picture for some time. I think it’s going to be a gradual reduction.”
Leave a Comment:
More unemployment? We're paying people to stay unemployed for years. Why? Because Democrats keep depressing the economy. Another round of unemployment will mean billions of dollars of debt. Watching this from the real world makes me wonder if Democrats are living in an alternative universe where reality is nothing but fairy dust and dope. Get a grip. SFU and buckle down and solve the fiscal cliff. These guys probably don't know a balance sheet from a roll of toilet paper. What a pantload.
President Cliff is leading the way!
If you want real stimulus get government the hell out of the way and let the American people get back to work.
LOL...Will Democrats now begin to accept the reality of a 15 to 20% unemployment rate that they denied throughout the campaign?
Their campaign motto should have been:"You gotta Spin it to Win it!" Meanwhile...our economy keeps spinning down the drain.
GOP ... war is free.
And yet, you are free to express that thought...
Hey dems, I have a brand new novel idea. Instead of extending benefits for the unemployed, help make america a hospitable place to hire people! DUH!
How so? What would make America a more hospitable place to hire people? Be specific.
I think we can come to the conclusion that republicans and democrats can not communicate. Congress would a good example of this. I think I know why. As DNA testing becomes more sophisticated, they will find that democrats and republicans are a slightly different species. Like they did with chimpanzees and bonobos. Chimpanzees are violent, unpredictable and the males totally dominate the females – like republicans. Bonobos are calm, civilized and the males and females are more equal – like democrats. While they can cross breed, you can not put chimpanzees and bonobos together as they will fight. Just like democrats and republicans.
I'm sure you're partner let's you think that your relationship is fair and balanced.
I'll bet you are sure of lots things you have no information about. This kind of goes with an IQ south of 100.
It used to be that unemployment lasted 16 weeks ! and that was all you received period . No more than that -you were cut off the teat -zero -zip -we have created an under achieving class of X Box Heroes who have no more desire than to stay up all night and and play their boxes and sleep and lounge about -heck why not as it pays about the same to do nothing while living on the Government ? And back in the day you had to actually get up and out and look for a job and they would check up on you -if you did not make so many serious calls per day they would not give you a check for the week ! They are far to lax these days in the administration of these most generous benefits -cut them off after a given and understood period of time -period !
This article proves how clueless the Democrats are re their efforts at improving the U.S. economy. Extending jobless benefits, i.e., paying people not to work, will NOT improve the U.S. economy!!!! It only increases the U.S. debt. Providing benefits to employers and incentives to hire workers to reduce the number that are jobless will improve the U.S. economy. The path that the Democrats is illconceived, reckless, stupid, and pathetic.
Jobless benefits do not pay people not to work. They do not pay people to not look for work.
Jobless benefits help pay the rent when a tenant is out of work. That money goes to pay for the mortage on the property which is an investment made by a bank where you and I have made deposits.
If it weren't for jobless benefits, the tenant would have to move out or the landlord would have to evict. Then the tenant would be out on the street. How is someone supposed to look for work while they are out on the street? That just makes the task of finding a job more difficult.
Holy #$%%@)%$!! WTF???
"Asked how this call for more stimulus spending was consistent with the idea of reducing budget deficits and the growing burden of federal debt, Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., said, “Not all spending is created equal.”"
Man, we are all screwed. Can't say that it's un-freakin' believable to hear utter drivel like this from another incompetent congress member.....but it still sucks to know that this is what our voting public has chosen.
HOW ABOUT THIS: JUST TURN ON THE PRINTING PRESSES, PUMP OUT SEVERAL MORE TRILLION GREENBACKS, AND SIMPLY SEND EVERY AMERICAN $1 MILLION BUCKS IN AN ENVELOPE. IF PRINTING MONEY IS THE ANSWER TO EVERY PROBLEM, WHY NOT PUT THE SOLUTION ON STEROIDS AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS????
Damn....future generations are simply going to hate us. Period.
Politicians don't care about the economy. A politician only cares about their own job. Whatever lies they need to tell people to stay in office is in their job description.
How can anyone be gullible enough to believe that giving their money to politicians who promise to give it back to them so that they will then have more money is a fool.
Government is a cost extracted from an economy and no matter how gullible the electorate is in believing that government spending is income to an economy will never make it so.
Republicans destroy the economy and then complain about the unemployed. What a bunch of dirt bags!
How did they do that? President Obama suggested it was all Bush's fault, but he never explained exactly how that transpired.
Someone told me that the GRE's, deregulation of banking, and unregulated derivates contributed to the financial meltdown.
But I have a hard time believing that President Clinton contributed to these issues. Even after he admitting his culpubality, as well as his party's, in the housing crisis. I was also shocked to learn that as an attorney, President Obama sued Citibank to force them to offer sub-prime mortgages. I was shocked.
I'll bet you were also shocked to learn that Obama just bought a 40 million dollar mansion in Hawaii and that Acorn helped him steal the election last month.
Lot's of people bitching about bailing out others who have gotten their ass kicked out the door due to not policing Wall street, and can't find a job.
You are the same who retained yours for some reason. Brown nosing ?
I was out for 11 months, and could have taken advantage of the WHOLE unemployment package, but I didn't. I did it to become a person that made me feel that I was one of contributing by having some pride by having a job.
BTW: My current job pays less than half of what I was making, and then the corporate jags cut me down to 36 hours and now to 24 a week. They got a bargain to start with at 40, but who the F can survive to raise a family on this? These are the same on salary, and the ones telling me to lump it!
No tax cuts for the rich, but the middle class and retired people are expected to eat another bowl of republican @!$%#. Mitch McChinless, Boner (intential spelled), and "wheres Waldo" Cantor, does not give a rat's ass about the middle class.
When the Walton family makes more $$$$ than 40% of the middle class totaled, I ask....When is this enough, and do any of the these top %'ers have any conscience.
A handful deciding for multi-millions.
Was that to limit your health care?
The Walton family is a bunch of dumb republican rednecks living in Arkansas...right?
And you are a democrat that is smart enough that you've got the economy figured out...right?
Why don't you start a business and make more money than the Walton family are making.
Maybe you could name it Dem-Mart...
Mj in Ct:
I have 1 month before I collect ANY health care, as they want me to wait 7 months to make sure.
I think that they got my premiums for the year already in the bank, while all RX so far has been full price and out of pocket.
What banner cheering corporations do you want to wave now?
Seems like you got yours!
The guy who started Walmart is dead. What's left are parasites with the same name.
doem309
Sounds like you work for a large employer, but waiting periods are common. I was just curious. Some small businesses are cutting hours to minimize employee benefit expenses.
Don't speak ill towards me, it's Congress that is responsible for the rules.
NO! Jobless benefits run long enough. I'm sick of paying for other people. If you do not have a job after a year, you are unemployable.
And what are you going to do with the unemployable? Just kick them out onto the street?
College was a long time ago but I do remember from economics or political science that there are investment that he government can make that return more to the economy than the original investment. Unemployment is one of these. I do realize that getting republicans to understand this is like trying to explain the earth rotating around the sun or that Acorn (closed in 2010) didn’t help Obama steal the election last month.
I think you got gypped on your college education...
Maybe you should stop with "I think" because this probably isn't true. And it's true that the earth really does rotate around the sun. I know it doesn't look that way.
How do you know the earth rotates around the sun when you also "know" it doesn't look that way?
You definitely got gypped.
Jim - I sure hope that we have some professional economists make the recommendations this time. When Obama was elected in 2008, he came into office and rather than gathering some smart minds to identify the type of spending that you speak of that has a quick impact and multiplication to it, Obama gave Congress a dollar amount and a deadline. So what happened, Congressional staffers, just off the campaign trail and rewarded with a staff job - most being liberal activists - not MBA economists - since it was a DEM-Controlled Congress, had nowhere to go but the PORK CLOSET.
That, my friends, was the last stimulus package.
Jim,
There is a multiplier effect which says for every dollar spent it adds $6.00 to the economy, but the problem with the government spending is you are using borrowed tax dollars and you would need a much larger multiplier effect as they only receive the tax money back with is probably 10% of the money spent
Rational Poster - it would be nice if that was true.
Wikipedia.org a complete list of everything stimulus money was spent on. Read and please tell me where the pork is.
Schumer didn't finish his sentence, what he meant to say was.....we need to extend unemployment benefits because we will all be running for re-election soon. Wheel out those truck loads of Obama phones we need to buy us some more votes.
Bobit - are you the one who's wife cut your dick off? I remember reading about that.
Jim, your input thus far amounts to what one would expect from an 15-year old high school drop out.
One what?
Democrats are way ahead of the Republicans.
There already starting to buy the next election.
And corporations are people right?????
Show me and example of one having to undergo a colonoscopy or cancer treatment?
Lemming's. All of you! Don't forget to run down the person looking for a handout for them or their family when they approach you at the next intersection tomorrow.
Probably the same that says "I gave at the office" when you pass a Salvation Army Kettle.
@!$%#'em all right?
Happy holidays to all!
But the republicans are clever. I'll bet they will offer a 35% tax cut for everyone in 2016. And they will say again that it will help reduce the national debt. And the same morons will believe it.
Is there no end to the Democrat's and President Obama's attempts to prop this administration up by borrowing money from China and increasing our national debt twice as fast as Bush did?
I think that is the right way . Borrow money from one of Mitts business in China then gut it.
Don't you know President George W. Bush borrowed from China?
In reality, a it's only a small percentage of our national debt that has been borrowed from China.
Lanikai Ron - a 15 year old high school drop out could tell you that Obama inherited a 1.4 trillion dollar deficit from Bush and has lowered it every year. But that is in the real world. I'm sure the numbers are different in your alternate reality.
We had to spend our tax money to "bail out" Capitalism.....AGAIN (remember the savings and loan debacle in the 80s? If not, ask John McCain about it)
Extend the unemployment benefits. It's the right thing to do.
Until there is no benefit to being unemployed there won't be low unemployment.
Let Them all move their business to china let them have their overseas tax loopholes then refuse to let them back in the country and sell their $1 products for $1.01 and never let them back in to steal from us again.
I prefer a job over benefits unlike the Obama administratio that seems to think 2% can support the rest of us.
Which of course is such a joke yet all that has been discussed and that the press has reported is about raising taxes on the Top 2%
I did the math. Raising rates by 3 points on the Top 1% generates $40 billion per year in new taxes - 2.7% of the $1.5 TRILLION annual deficit we have been running - yet that is all we hear about.
ANOTHER "cliff"??? What is it with this administration? All Obama knows how to do is find new ways to jack up our National Debt. Enough already. No more extensions!
And while we're at it, no more extensions of ANY of the Bush tax cuts. The dems won't cut anything and they won't stop spending money we don't have, so it's time for the tax payers who voted for that dumbass to reap the benefits. I'm not one of them, but I'll take my licks with the rest of them.
Another cliff ? Remember last year when we got downgraded because of stupid GOP shenanigans. That cost tax payers billions. Don't tell me some thing you have no facts on just blame because you are lame.
Increasing our national debt at the rate this administration is doing, guarantees another downgrade and no matter how you spin it, the Republicans cannot be blamed. You have no understanding of how this works, do you?
Lanikai Ron
"Increasing our national debt at the rate this administration is doing, guarantees another downgrade and no matter how you spin it, the Republicans cannot be blamed."
The republicans already have been blamed, and rightfully so, by S&P
You drooling riht-wing nut jobs were defeated because of this idiocy, keep it up and go the way of the Know-Nothings, can't happen to a more deserving bunch of @!$%#s
You have no understanding of how this works, do you?
Trickledown..........
I'm glad you brought up the S&P downgrade. That was 16 months ago, and at that time S&P warned the Obama administration that if he didn't have a plan to reduce our National Debt by 4 Trillion Dollars over 10 years, that we would face another downgrade.
Obama has made absolutely NO move to follow that advice nor have the dems in the Senate. Every bill that the House sends to the Senate involving cuts, Senate Leader Harry won't even let those bills come to the floor. Hell, he wouldn't even let the President's budget bill come to the floor.....probably because we're not the only ones who know that Obama is nothing more than a hand puppet.......brainless. I'm sure they encourage their messianic figurehead to tour the country making MORE speeches just to get his ass out of Washington.
Our National Debt is now at 16.3 Trillion Dollars. Nothing in this "fiscal cliff" melodrama is even aimed at THAT problem. If Obama actually gets the extra taxes and stimulus money he's demanding, he's already said that he's going to spend it on something else. And here's another clue for S&P.....Barack is now demanding the authority to raise the Debt Limit anytime he wants to. Does that sound like he cares about our rising debt?
Ha! This is the NEW reality of what it means to live in America under the rule of a guy who never created a job in his life and never drew a paycheck that wasn't signed by Uncle Sam. Just wait, its only going to get worse, "fiscal cliff" or no fiscal cliff. Until someone pulls the "needle" out of Obama's arm and takes away his Rx for printing money, we're all doomed. Be prepared, those of you who make $100,000/Yr. you'll soon be classified as an Obama "millionaire"
You can always buy another gun and hide under your bed.
"The middle-class has been built out" to include those making $250K.
That is one area of the economy that Obama and the Dems have succeeded in stimulating.
I liked guns too when I was a kid.
Let every one in the senate and congress take a pay cut to contribute Oh and lets not forget Obama the only President who was man enough not to take a paycheck was Kennedy!!!
You would see how fast they could fix Washington Spending and balance the Budget!!!
I liked the very first post - It said, "Is this the beginning of a joke?"
This has gone from the ridiculous to the absurd. Can you believe the POTUS and the GOP-Controlled House are negotiating on raising taxes and the DEM-Senate is proposing to somehow pump some money into the economy?
HAVE WE GONE MAD?
I'm still mad about the wars and economic collapse in 2008.
Yes. we have gone mad. it was started by Rush Limbaugh to make a great media outlett that people would believe no matter how much you lie. IT WORKED!
Taking Rush Limbaugh or Fox away from the republicans would be like taking cartoons away from children. The sad thing is that the believe some of the stuff they hear is real.
How the heck did Limbaugh get in here? I was talking about a time when DEM Senators are saying the economy is so tenuous that it needs a stimulus and the POTUS is holding the economy hostage wanting to raise taxes. That is the madness.
Guess what they have no choice in the matter but to raise the taxes or they will be history. Years from now this administration will be considered one of the greatest.
You are seriously delusional.
But the right wing can still piss and moan about things they think Obama did but didn't and about things they think he will do in the future but won't.
These are the people who think that Acorn (closed in 2010) helped Obama steal the election last month.
Nnd you are delusionally serious.
Austerity
For generating $80 billion per year in new tax revenue? I don't think so.
Now, if this administration gets out ahead of Medicare and SS and makes them viable for another 75 yrs, then they should receive recognition for that but at this point they are being drug kicking and screeming by the GOP into that agreement.
Austerity Never Works
Perhaps you should see how Mr. Assad's stepping on the "red line" drawn by President Obama unfolds.
Tax the Rich! Tax the rich! sorry that is old news what's the new battle cry Eat the rich?
It's whatever you want to think it is.
Cut this , Cut that , Cut this. Should have done that trough the Bush administration Helping Dick and his buddies and the war machine profiteers. Spent our surplus and put our wars and Tax breaks on the credit card.
Spend more, borrow more, tax more. If there was a surplus then taxes were too high the Government should be a non-profit organization.