By Rick Manning

There were fewer people unemployed in America in August 2019 than there were in August 1975 when we were just shy of 69 million fewer people in the economy.

I graduated from Norco High School in 1975. I am now eligible to collect Social Security. And there are fewer Americans unemployed today than the summer I graduated high school.

If this doesn’t shock you, then nothing will.

Economies can be measured by many things, the number of people who want a job but can’t find one is perhaps the most important political and human measure.

To provide a shorter time frame, there are 4.2 million more Americans in the civilian labor force since January 2017, when Donald Trump became President, and there are 1.5 million fewer Americans who are unemployed today than then. Even as the labor participation rate (percentage of people 16 and older who are in the workforce) has risen from 62.9 percent to 63.2 percent.

A total 5.7 million more jobs have been created.

What we are witnessing is almost an economic miracle. More people are working today at 157.8 million than at any time in history. Fewer people are unemployed this August than in any August since 1974. The last time fewer Americans were unemployed during this month, the pet rock was a popular gift, the Godfather Part II and Blazing Saddles were the two most popular movies and the Vietnam War was still raging.

For all the economic doom and gloom Eeyores, try to find your inner Tigger, because America is working, wages continue to climb, and inflation remains low. And the economy is defying the gravitational expectations of the regular business cycle, largely because Americans are coming back into the workforce; and in spite of the constant negative Nancy news, they are positive about the future.

One final nail in the partisan pessimists down talking the economy coffin is the simple fact that the unemployment rate of 3.7 percent marks the fifteenth time in 18 months that the unemployment rate has been below 4 percent. The last time prior to this run that the unemployment rate was below 4 percent was in January of 1970, almost 50 years ago.

As proof, the much disliked Transportation Security Administration (TSA) with their intrusive blue gloves, reported that the nine busiest days in their history occurred this summer. Note to CNBC: People don’t decide to travel by plane when they believe that their incomes are in jeopardy. Instead they do the staycation which became so popular during the Obama era.

The simple fact is that Americans are not only working but they are making more money today than they have in the past. The household median income rose to a record $61,372 in 2017, as more Americans are benefitting from wage gains earned. The 2018 number will be reported in October, and given the on-going 3.2 percent year over year increases reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, it is obvious that 2018 and 2019 will have been even better years for American’s pocketbooks.

With all of the down talking of the economy by political and economic pundits, it is important for people to understand that what they are experiencing in the personal lives is what others are — this economy rocks. If you want a job, you can get a job, and you are getting paid more for the same work today than you were last year without inflation eating away all or more of your wage gains.

Yet, problems still remain. Opioid and other addictions continue to have a hollowing out effect on our workforce. As large as the labor force is, and it’s never been larger, there would be about 6.9 million more people aged 16-64 in the workforce today if the labor participation rate for that age group was the same today as it was in 1997. This addiction crisis is also fueling a homeless problem which HUD Secretary Ben Carson is striving to address.

Here’s the good news, that number used to be 9.7 million, meaning 2.8 million working age adults have reentered the labor force and have jobs, with 16-64-year-old labor participation rising from 72.7 percent in 2015 to 73.8 percent in 2018. The restored hope that this represents is the untold story of renewal that is hidden by a media animus toward Donald Trump that refuses to deliver good news.

But even in a time of unprecedented low unemployment rates, work still remains to be done to bring people who have been left behind, like those with disabilities, out of the shadows and into the workforce. The fact that almost 36 million Americans remain on food assistance programs shows that the economy has not yet lifted enough boats to self-sufficiency. The fact that 8.1 million fewer people are on food assistance than when President Trump took office shows that our nation is heading in the right direction.

America should be celebrating the Trump economic success story, and judging by the summer vacation travel reports, it appears that the people get it, even if the media doesn’t.

Rick Manning is the President of Americans for Limited Government.

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The August jobs report mocks the idea of a recession with 571,000 more people are employed

Sept. 6, 2019, Fairfax, Va.—Americans for Limited Government Rick Manning today issued the following statement on the latest jobs numbers:

“The August jobs report mocks the idea of a recession. 571,000 more people are employed today than ever in the history of America, and fewer people are unemployed now than at this point in 1978 when the civilian labor force had 62 million fewer people. With the number of seniors working down, it appears every job created on a net basis was in the critical 16-64-year-old category. The Trump economy is very strong. Not only are more people working than ever, people are making more money as in the past 12 months, average hourly earnings have increased by 3.2 percent. The Trump trade agenda continues with 17,000 manufacturing jobs have been added in the past three months. We are still at 50-year lows in unemployment. Finally, since Trump took office, 5.7 million jobs have been created, beyond the levels that many political pundits thought were possible. It doesn’t seem possible U.S. labor markets could get any better, but somehow every month they do.”

Permalink here: https://getliberty.org/2019/09/the-august-jobs-report-mocks-the-idea-of-a-recession-with-571000-more-people-are-employed/

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ALG Editor’s Note: In the following featured column from Foxnews.com, Newt Gingrich and Christian Whiton make the case for President Donald Trump to stand in solidarity with the people of Hong Kong:

Trump can support Hong Kong freedom fighters with these actions

By Newt Gingrich and Christian Whiton

The Chinese Communist Party faces a crisis of its own making in Hong Kong.

The people of Hong Kong finally had enough when Beijing’s cronies proposed an extradition law that effectively would have imported mainland China's political repression. For the past three months, demonstrators have been taking to the streets in massive numbers to protest the Chinese Communist Party’s tightening control over the city.

As a result, the government’s decision Wednesday to withdraw the extradition bill will not quell the protests, which have evolved into a larger quest for freedom.

The outcome of the struggle of the people of Hong Kong will have a significant bearing on the future of China – and U.S. national interests. As President Trump has said, a U.S.-China trade deal would be hard to complete if Beijing uses force in Hong Kong.

The crisis is also a reminder that the ruling Chinese Communist Party violates almost all of its international agreements. In this case, China has violated the 1984 Joint Declaration with Britain and the Basic Law that came into effect upon Hong Kong’s 1997 handover, ending its status as a British colony. Both measures were supposed to preserve Hong Kong’s freedoms and establish real democracy.

Clearly, the promises made to the people of Hong Kong decades ago have been disregarded and violated by China’s ruling Communist Party. Now, in Hong Kong the world can see what many Chinese really think about their unelected government. This embarrassment comes just as Beijing is preparing to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the state’s founding Oct. 1.

Furthermore, Beijing faces an unsolvable conundrum. Unlike the Tiananmen Square massacre 30 years ago, when the government used brutal force on an isolated population that wanted rights it lacked, in Hong Kong a Westernized population connected to the world is fighting to preserve the freedom it has – and to which is legally entitled. History has shown than no amount of force will fully extinguish their quest.

Furthermore, Chinese Communist Party General Secretary Xi Jinping is unlikely to order an overt invasion of Hong Kong by the People’s Liberation Army. Doing so would cause free nations to end Hong Kong’s status as a trade and financial hub separate from the mainland — and thus deny Beijing a major source of capital and gateway to the outside world. Xi has painted himself into a corner.

Instead of the army, Xi will likely use the Hong Kong police — possibly augmented by mainland thugs — to increase repression. In fact, this has already begun.

Police have arrested more than 1,000 citizens, and each new day brings more footage of cops brutally beating subdued protesters. Among those arrested were legislators from the democratic camp and protest leaders who have been the strongest advocates for nonviolence.

Hong Kong’s Chief Executive Carrie Lam admitted in a leaked private discussion that she has been rendered powerless by the “national level.” Don’t be fooled – Beijing already calls the shots.

All of these factors imply that Hong Kong will be unsettled until Chinese Communist Party officials engage in a serious dialogue with democratic legislators that paves the way to the democracy Hong Kong was promised.

America has a strong interest in supporting this quest not only because of our historic support for those willing to struggle for their own freedom, but because it will distract and weaken the Chinese Communist Party that wages cyberwar on America, steals our intellectual property, robs us on trade, kills our citizens with fentanyl, and works to erode the rule of law globally.

The Trump administration can take four practical steps to help the people of Hong Kong.

First, use the U.S. Global Magnitsky Act. Named for a murdered Russian dissident, the law allows denial of U.S. visas and property sanctions to be applied to human rights abusers. Gradually apply it from abusive police leaders to high-ranking officials until repression and political arrests end.

Second, use declassified intelligence to expose the corruption of Chinese officials. To solidify his power, Xi conducted an “anti-corruption” purge that actually just replaced incumbent party bosses and his competitors with his own immoral cronies. Chinese citizens undoubtedly suspect this favoritism and graft, but it should be made clear to all. Weakening Xi helps Hong Kong and America.

Third, use the anti-money laundering provisions of the Patriot Act to seize bank accounts and other property of corrupt Chinese officials. We should urge allies with large Chinese populations – such as Australia, Singapore and Canada – to do the same. We can also send home the “princeling” children of Communist Party officials studying or otherwise residing in the United States, and other Chinese expatriates who support the party. Those who keep hardliners like Xi in power will start to think twice.

Fourth, help Hong Kong’s peaceful protest leaders by providing encouragement and technology. Taxpayer-funded organizations intended to do this, such as the National Endowment for Democracy, are featured substantially in the federal budget – but are not present in reality. President Trump should order his administration to expand the availability of satellite phones and other technologies that can survive an Internet shutdown in Hong Kong. Washington should also work with Ukrainians with recent experience resisting repression and other veteran dissidents to train and encourage protest leaders, either in Hong Kong or in the freer environs of Taiwan if necessary.

The free world’s greatest adversary has run haplessly into serious political trouble. For our sake, and the sake of those protesting China's communist totalitarian dictatorship, let’s take a stand for freedom in solidarity with the people of Hong Kong.

Permalink here.

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