The Dearth Of Job Creation

Simple minded left wing journalists (I know, I repeat myself) celebrate every time the weekly statistics for new unemployment claims come in under 400,000. But the more critical data is the feeble job creation numbers. In 2008, the United States was ranked 4th in the world in the ease of new business creation. Since the Obama regime claimed power, it has dropped to 17th.

Initial claims for unemployment benefits rose 15,000 to a seasonally adjusted 381,000 last week, the Labor Department reported today. CNBC goes on to report: "Claims remain below the 400,000 mark that is normally associated with an improvement in labor market conditions."

But these aren't normal market conditions. In a normal economic recovery, new firm and job creation are higher than recession levels. That is not the case in the Obama recovery.

While job losses have slowed, job creation has not picked up. In fact, as The Heritage Foundation chart based on Bureau of Labor Statistics data above shows, while gross job losses are now at their lowest level in years, so are gross job gains.