Bernie Sanders says jobs report doesn't tell the whole story

[Uncle Joe]

(snip)

"There's another government statistic that comes out at the same time that does not often get reported, which looks at unemployment not only for those who don't have jobs, but those who are working part-time when they want to work full-time," Sanders said Friday at an event in Manchester, N.H. "And that's a lot of people in this country. And those people in high unemployment areas who have given up looking for work."

The number of unemployed people in America -- 7.8 million -- does not factor in what the Bureau of Labor Statistics calls "involuntary part-time workers." Buried further down in the jobs report released Friday, the bureau counted 6 million such workers.

"When you add all that together, you've got 9.9 percent unemployment, which is a serious problem," Sanders said. Despite Sanders' lukewarm response to the report, he knocked Republicans for being even less enthusiastic.

"Well, today I think, unless you are very, very partisan — and it does astound me how some of my Republican colleagues can go around talking about the problems we have, and of course we do have economic problems today, ignoring where we came from in the last seven years," he said. "When President [George W.] Bush left office, we were losing 800,000 jobs a month. That's seven years ago, 800,000 jobs a month. An astronomical number."


http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2016/02/05/Bernie-Sanders-says-jobs-report-doesnt-tell-the-whole-story/5401454698853/

[Cali_Democrat]

1. Another problem for Bernie if he wins the nomination

He will be running against Obama's economic record. Whether it's true or not, voters always hold the President responsible for the economy. See 2008 when Dems controlled both houses of Congress, but Bush was still blamed.

Bernie is running on the platform that the economy sucks. That's going to be hard for Bernie to do because the GOP nominee is obviously gonna say the economy sucks as well and the Dems are to blame because a Democrat is in the White House.

[Uncle Joe]

2. What part of this paragraph did you miss?

"Well, today I think, unless you are very, very partisan — and it does astound me how some of my Republican colleagues can go around talking about the problems we have, and of course we do have economic problems today, ignoring where we came from in the last seven years," he said. "When President Bush left office, we were losing 800,000 jobs a month. That's seven years ago, 800,000 jobs a month. An astronomical number."

[Cali_Democrat]

3. That won't work on voters. Voters blame the party that controls the White House.

You apparently didn't read my post.



If you say the economy sucks and you're a Dem and a Dem is in the White House, you'll get your ass handed to you. The GOPer nominee will say: "See! Even they admit the economy sucks while a Dem controls the White House.

Think about it.

[Uncle Joe]

9. Bernie mixes no words in doing both giving President Obama credit for turning the economy around

since the days of Bush the Least while also pointing out our structural flaws in how jobs reports are depicted.

This gives him an advantage over Hillary; who would try white washing over the obvious, telling the American People not to believe their real life experiences.

The issue of how jobs reports are depicted is nothing new either, this has been a shortcoming for decades and Bernie to his credit exposes it, while also talking about how things were much worse under Bush.

Think about that.

[Cali_Democrat]

15. That will not work on voters.

You still don't seem to understand how the electorate thinks when it comes to the economy.

The party that control the White House is responsible. Bernie's whole shtick is that the economy sucks. The GOP will run clip after clip showing Bernie saying the economy sucks....then they will show Obama who has been in the White House for 7+ years. Bernie is running as a member of the Democratic Party.

You seem to have a fundamental misunderstanding of how presidential politics works.

Voters will then blame the party that controls the White House.

Bernie is setting himself and the party up for disaster as he continues to badmouth the economy and by extension a sitting Democratic president.

[Uncle Joe]

17. You still don't understand how the Internet works, your model may have worked over 15 years ago

when virtually all information the American People received came via the one way, top down age of television but times are changing.

The millennials having grown up with the Internet and increasing numbers of older generations becoming more attuned to it everyday had/have their vision of the world, politics and the knowledge of how propaganda works broadened as a result and are much less likely to fall for narrow, partisan standard memes of control.

Bernie is doing exactly the right thing in laying out the full picture, for the American People to see, any attempt by the Republicans to turn his truthful words against him will be met by swift and overwhelming Internet rebuttal, further weakening his Republican opponents.

[Admiral Loinpresser]

13. The economy does suck.

That's why Bernie has overcome all the Establishment hurdles and is now running dead even with Hillary. Because everybody knows this $7.25 economy sucks. Most people either can't make it or are barely making it. Bernie is the first truth teller in politics I can remember since Shirley Chisholm.

[redstateblues]

5. It's funny how the Republicans have been silent

As the economy has improved. The only ones talking how bad it is are the Democratic Socialists. Ironic. What did Bernie have to say about unemployment dropping below 5%? Obama has done a good job with the disaster that he inherited from W. What does Bernie have to say about that? zip

[Cali_Democrat]

7. Exactly.

Even the GOP knows Obama's record on the economy is good, that's why they're talking about ISIS.

The party that controls the White House is ALWAYS held responsible for the economy.

It's as if Bernie and his supporters have no clue how politics in America works.

[Admiral Loinpresser]

21. False. Bernie has addressed

President Obama's economic contribution many, many times. Obama was dealt the worst hand since FDR, economically and otherwise. An economy that was losing 800,000 jobs a month under Bush was much worse than this economy. But does that mean this is a good economy? Hell, no. The median income is about $25k. That is a starvation wage.

Real unemployment (the unemployed plus part time workers who want to be full time) is about 10%. That is also much better than it was, but a damn long way from good.

We need to go on the attack politically. We should be talking about expanding Social Security, not how much we are willing to cut it. People don't get what political revolution means. It means setting a radically different course. We can't have Democratic presidents praising Ronald Reagan, because he was a big institutional racist and had a terrible ideology for working class and poor people. So we need a new FDR, someone who will fulfill the promise of the New Deal. This time it is for everybody.

I am unmoved by defeatist talk about gerrymandering and the obstructionist GOP. The only thing to do is to start fighting. Change never comes easy, but it doesn't come at all if we don't fight. I am amused by people who think the GOP domination is set in stone. The reason we have become uncompetitive nationally as a party is because of the defeatism created by Bill Clinton and the DLC in the mid 80s. Poor people don't vote because they are right. It doesn't make any difference. We need to give poor people a reason to vote, for example by expanding social security, not offering to cut it. Hillary won't take SS cuts off the table. To hell with that bullshit.

Here is what a real Democrat sounds like:

[wilt the stilt]

6. Bernie is not a democrat

he doesn't care about the party. He is very ambitious and i hope most of the people wake up. He cares about his POWER.

[TheProgressive]

8. Did you forget the sarcasm thingy?

[wilt the stilt]

12. there is no sarcasm

it is the truth. He is very ambitious and couldn't give a shit about the democrats.

[frylock]

14. Only 30% of registered voters do.

[WhaTHellsgoingonhere]

11. Lol

[Live and Learn]

4. K&R for the truth! nt

[redstateblues]

10. Bernie is starting to sound like a Republican!

complaining about things getting better, sounding like Rush et al

[WhaTHellsgoingonhere]

16. Actually, Dems and Rs alternate on this statistic

It just depends which Party is in office. Another example of Dems behaving like Rs. We expect it from Rs. When Dems do it, we're being hypocrites.

[Uncle Joe]

19. Bernie is doing nothing but speaking the truth, the jobs report is flawed this has been known for

years and a Republican would never give President Obama credit for turning things around since the days of Bush, Bernie does this every time he speaks of our economic condition.

That's one major thing that gives him so much credibility with the people and increases his chances of beating the Republicans in the General Election should he get the nomination.

[ucrdem]

18. So Bernie has joined the ranks of RW unskewers.

Good luck with that.

[Uncle Joe]

20. Did you miss the last paragraph too? Are you suggesting that Bernie should lie to the people?

"Well, today I think, unless you are very, very partisan — and it does astound me how some of my Republican colleagues can go around talking about the problems we have, and of course we do have economic problems today, ignoring where we came from in the last seven years," he said. "When President Bush left office, we were losing 800,000 jobs a month. That's seven years ago, 800,000 jobs a month. An astronomical number."