And see Doug Ross, "Welcome Back, Carter: Labor Force Participation Rate Lowest Since '81." (Via Memeorandum.)
Plus, at the San Francisco Chronicle, "Romney Raises Bar on What Constitutes Good Unemployment Rate":
Mitt Romney raised the bar for what comprises an unemployment rate worth celebrating as he used the latest jobs figures to criticize President Barack Obama's management of the economy while campaigning in Pennsylvania.BONUS: From Doctor Zero, at Human Events, "Welcome to Part-Time America."
"Anything over four percent is not cause for celebration," the presumptive Republican presidential nominee said inside a warehouse of a specialized cement and corrosion- resistant materials manufacturer in Pittsburgh.
"I'm going to get America working again," Romney told supporters. "I'm going to get America strong again."
The former Massachusetts governor called it a "sad time in America for people who want work and can't find jobs."
Employers in the U.S. added fewer workers than forecast in April while the jobless rate declined as people left the labor force, underscoring concern that the recovery by the world's largest economy may be losing speed.
Payrolls climbed 115,000, the smallest gain in six months, after a revised 154,000 rise in March that was greater than initially estimated, according to Labor Department figures released today in Washington. The median estimate of 85 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News called for a 160,000 advance.
Unemployment
The jobless rate fell to a three-year low of 8.1 percent, from 8.2 percent in March.
While the jobless rate has declined since its peak during Obama's term of 10 percent in October 2009, the drop has been slow and halting. It was stuck at about 9 percent through the first three quarters of last year.
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