THE PROMISE: THE PACE OF JOB GROWTH WILL QUICKEN

September 14, 2020

“I consider this very much… a bill for jobs.” President Trump at signing ceremony for TCJA, Dec. 22, 2017 [NBC]

Source: BLS, “Employment, Hours, and Earnings – National: Current Employment Statistics: Total Nonfarm Employment, Seasonally Adjusted.” https://www.bls.gov/data/ – employment

Despite Republican claims that their tax plan would quicken the pace of job growth, employment gains over the two years since the tax cuts were enacted is slower than the trend over the previous seven years after the Great Recession ended. Monthly job growth has averaged 185,000 in 2018 and 2019, whereas monthly job growth in the last two years of the Obama Administration averaged 211,000. Obama’s monthly job growth in his last three years averaged 224,000, whereas Trump has averaged 182,000 in his first three years. 

Source: BLS, “Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey: Unemployment Rate.” https://www.bls.gov/data/ – unemployment

A seven-year decline in the unemployment rate under President Obama has continued in the two years since enactment of the Trump-GOP tax law. The tax cuts appear to have done little, if anything, to reduce unemployment.