Biden Takes Victory Lap as Jobs Report Cools Recession Talk

The sunglasses weren't taken off. As Joe Biden walked out onto the south balcony of the White House on a hot day in August, he reached up to take off his sunglasses, but left them in place, perhaps a sign of his sunny mood after the release of a record-setting jobs.

There are more people working in America today than there were before the Pandemic began. There are more people working in America than ever before. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday that the unemployment rate fell to 3.5% in July, the lowest level in five decades.

The country has recovered all of the jobs that were lost during the Pandemic. A professor of economics and public policy at the University of Michigan says that it puts an end to the idea that the economy is in a recession. There is news suggesting the economy is growing robustly and that people are getting jobs. The labor market is healing.

Biden is set to sign new legislation next week to bolster computer chip manufacturing in the U.S., at a time when gas prices have started to fall.

After months of devastating headlines about soaring inflation, the aftermath of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and his terrible approval numbers, this week brought other developments suggesting Biden's political future may be looking brighter. Kansas voters resoundingly reject an anti-abortion amendment to change the state constitution, a sign that the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade may motivate more voters to support Democrats. In a historic expansion of the alliance championed by Biden, Finland and Sweden are on the verge of joining. The announcement that the CIA had killed Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri was welcomed by Republicans.

Biden has provided a contrast to how things have changed under his watch. Americans have been able to get back to work because of the distribution of vaccines and drugs. The policies that helped put the Pandemic in the rear view mirror are a big part of the macroeconomic story right now.

Republicans said the low unemployment numbers underscored how American businesses are struggling to find enough workers and that Democratic policies would discourage more people from joining the workforce. This doesn't make sense.

Biden said on Friday that the robust jobs market was proof that he was following through on his promise to build up the middle class. Biden said, "Where I come from, that's a good thing and it's longoverdue."

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