Jobs numbers are good, but no Reagan recovery, GOP says

AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite

While the economy added nearly a quarter million jobs last month and the unemployment rate fell to its lowest level in three years, House Republicans slammed President Obama for not doing more to get it back on track faster.

The Labor Department said the economy added 243,000 new jobs in January and the jobless rate dropped from 8.5 percent to 8.3 percent, but Republicans said that's no "Reagan recovery."

"The jobs numbers today are certainly welcome news. All of us want to see more Americans get back to work," House Majority Leader Eric Cantor told reporters. However, he added, "We could do a lot better... If we want to get more people back to work, if we want to reflect the growth rate we've seen in the Reagan recovery and beyond, we're going to have to focus on small business."

Alluding to the legislation President Obama called for this week to help small businesses, Cantor said, "The president this week has indicated that perhaps he may now join us in focusing on the backbone of the American economy."

He said House Republicans would bring a bill to the floor in the coming months to give small businesses a 20 percent tax cut.

House Speaker John Boehner said there are "flickers of hope, and certainly they are welcome," but pointed out, "Here we are 36 straight months of unemployment over 8 percent."

Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash. vice chair of the House Republican Conference, said that President Obama has taken a "borrowing and spending" approach to improving the economy, "and those are policies that fail, and if anything they make it worse."

She added, "President Reagan took a very different approach. He took an approach that was focused on pro-growth, on free-market solutions... an approach that in the third year of his term resulted in the economy booming by then."

The unemployment rate in January fell to 8.3 percent, its lowest point in nearly three years. January marked the fifth straight month of improvement, with 243,000 net jobs created -- the most in nine months.

In spite of the ongoing recovery, conservatives enjoy pointing out that the Reagan recovery was more robust -- James Pethokoukis of the American Enterprise Institute points out that the economy grew 7.2 percent in the second full year of the Reagan recovery, while growth hit 1.7 percent in 2011, the second full year of recovery in the Obama administration.

Joe Weisenthal of Business Insider responded that the Obama administration was facing conditions unprecedented in post-War America, such as the housing bust, the financial crisis and the subsequent credit crisis. He also calls President Reagan a "deficit lover."

"The conditions behind the Great Recession were far worse than anything Reagan inherited, and Obama has pulled off a recovery with less of a sustained growth in Federal Government spending," he wrote.

[PEACHES624]

MITT R. SAYS THERE IS A SAFETY NET FOR THE POOR, HE "IS NOT CONCERNED. HE AND TRUMP BOTH HAVE BREAD & BUTTER ON THEIR TABLE,THE POOR HAVE FOODSTAMPS ETC. BOTH "LIKE TO FIRE PEOPLE". THEY DON'T HAVE A CLUE AS TO HOW THE MAJORITY OF US THE AMERICAN PEOPLE ARE LIVING. THEY ARE SOOOO RICH THEY DON'T EVEN KNOW HOW MUCH MONEY THEY HAVE. DON'T THEY KNOW THAT THE RICH ARE A MINORITY? STUPID IS AS STUPID DOES.

[hhandyman]

No Regain Tax rate either to pay the freight for the wars on the US Tab... IF you war you pay for it in the time of that war the first cuts that should happen to the pensions of those that put us at war transfer the secret service payroll to those that have a net worth in excess of 1 million dollars its an honest tax and if they no longer want the service they can end it.

[RobAla]

CBS 02/03/12: Stephanie Condon: "In spite of the ongoing recovery, conservatives enjoy pointing out that the Reagan recovery was more robust -- James Pethokoukis of the American Enterprise Institute points out that the economy grew 7.2 percent in the second full year of the Reagan recovery, while growth hit 1.7 percent in 2011, the second full year of recovery in the Obama administration."

The point being that President Obama had a working model of how to come out of a recession, and he ignored it. President Obama decided to experiment on his own, and it has resulted in extending the economic downturn and extending the recession. We are crawling out of this recession at a snails pace, and it is in spite of President Obama's failed poli

[smehl1506]

You forgot something, Rob:

Joe Weisenthal of Business Insider responded that the Obama administration was facing conditions unprecedented in post-War America, such as the housing bust, the financial crisis and the subsequent credit crisis..."

"The conditions behind the Great Recession were far worse than anything Reagan inherited, and Obama has pulled off a recovery with less of a sustained growth in Federal Government spending," he wrote.

Be afraid, Republicans, be very afraid.

[ProgressNow]

Boy you have a realllllll short memory don't you. The Dems wanted to do a lot more for the economy, but the GOP blocked it in the Senate. Don't you fools on the right remember ANYTHING!?!??!??!?

[ladyang]

These neocons/teabagger have to stop referencing that old koot of yeasteryear! That was 30 years ago and these are differnt times with different problems. Get over yourselves neocons/teabaggers and admit this is good news and President Obama deserves the credit!!!!

[ProgressNow]

Nothing pisses-off a repub more than something good happening for the working class...they hate that as much as they do having a black man in that White House. Poor Mitch McConnell...its just not your day is it.

[ProgressNow]

Weeper Bone-head, get off you ass and pass the President's Jobs Bill!!!!

[ProgressNow]

Weeper Bone-head, get off you ass and pass the President's Jobs Bill!!!!

[BlameRepublicanz]

these obstructionist traitors do everything they can do slow the recovery and now they are complaining that its no "reagan recovery"...unbelievable.

[Thinkbeforeyouwrite]

This was a recession following a financial crisis - a different set of issues than Reagan dealt with. We are also dealing with the problems coming out of Europe. It is a bit more complicated now.

[Raptorsmasher]

Of course it's not a Reagan recovery. Ronnie didn't have to follow Bush who left his country in an economic mess.

[js2212]

And Obama's not adding, if not eclipsing the mess? Looks to me like you are ignoring a whole boatload of factual evidence. Bush wasn't a great president, but let's keep it in perspective, shall we?