Ron Paul Campaign Press Release - Ron Paul Campaign Statement on October 2011 Unemployment

Dire circumstances demand authentic solutions

LAKE JACKSON, Texas — Ron Paul 2012 Presidential Campaign Manager John Tate released the following statement concerning the Bureau of Labor Statistics' employment situation summary for the month of October 2011:

"The national unemployment rate of 9 percent for the month of October 2011 comes as no shock. There are plenty of data illustrating a dire state of affairs even as Washington intervenes heavily in the economy — and seeks to nudge us further off the cliff.

"The four-week moving average for new unemployment insurance claims is still higher than the troublesome 400,000 benchmark.

"An all-time record 6.7 percent of Americans, a staggering 20.5 million people, suffer deep poverty, defined in 2010 as earning $5,570 or less or just $11,157 for a family of four.

"In total, 46.2 million people live below the official poverty line. This week, we also learned that nearly 15 percent of Americans — 45.8 million people — relied on food stamps in August, with recipient rolls having risen 8.1 percent in the past year.

"All of this is taking place in a wealthy industrialized nation of 312 million people blessed with favorable geography and abundant natural resources.

"We can and must do better.

"More federal intervention is not the answer; it will only dig a deeper hole. Few in government seem to realize this.

"To make matters worse, this week, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke announced a tacit continuation of the Fed's quantitative easing policy, meaning the institution's top official still can't grasp the truth that the Fed-created boom and bust cycles result in the kind of stubborn joblessness we're seeing.

"Also note how casually our leaders mention there will be sustained weak economic growth until 2014.

"Meanwhile, the Obama administration is making crude threats about women being assaulted as a result of Congress deciding against the President's costly, deficit-financed stimulus re-boot. This shows a clear lack of the leadership America urgently needs.

"In September, metropolitan area unemployment for Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, the locus of government and influence peddling, was a respectable 6.1 percent, demonstrating that as the private sector suffers, government thrives.

"Washington elites cannot see the trouble they are causing or the pain working Americans are feeling. Washington always flourishes in the midst of the crashes it creates.

"Worst of all, the Washington establishment is unconcerned and unsympathetic about the crushing debt — now matching U.S. GDP — being forced on today's workers and future generations of taxpayers.

"Ron Paul's ambitious 'Plan to Restore America' is the boldest plan to reduce the federal deficit. It cuts taxes, authorizes a comprehensive audit of the Fed, and reins in dangerous government intervention by curtailing runaway spending and regulatory overreaches.

"Today's government-imposed economic weakness demands action. Dr. Paul is the only candidate with the experience and plan to get Americans back to work and create lasting prosperity."