For as long as the Bureau of Labor Statistics has been counting these things, there has never been a worse time to be unemployed if you don't want to stay that way. The unemployed are staying unemployed for longer than ever before. That's why you're seeing such high rates of unemployment across the country. High unemployment is due to persistent unemployment:
What is the Congressional super-committee on the debt and deficit going to do about jobs? The answer is: nothing." Not because the people on the committee are bad people, but because that's not the committee's job. A number of Democratic Senators want to change that, however. They want to expand the scope of the commission's responsibilities:
Dear Leader McConnell:Given that the single best deficit reduction strategy is economic growth, we urge you to ensure that your appointments to the new joint select committee (“JSC”) created by the debt limit bill are committed to a policy of job creation.The recent spate of discouraging economic news underscores the need to make employment the top priority of our government...It is therefore appropriate and important that the JSC explicitly embrace job creation as a part of its mission. Targeted investments in economic growth and job creation can complement and even enhance long-term deficit reduction efforts and should be a priority that the JSC embraces. Indeed, failure to make such investments could have a serious negative impact on our fiscal situation...