John Boehner:
Private-sector job growth continues to be undermined by the triple threat of higher taxes, more failed 'stimulus' spending, and excessive federal regulations. Together, these Washington policies have created a fog of uncertainty that's left small businesses unable to hire and American families worried about the future.
Yeah, okay, the 'threat of higher taxes' is responsible for today's weak jobs report except:
- Republicans control the House, so there's no way taxes are going up unless John Boehner wants them to go up.
- Apparently, John Boehner does want taxes to go up, because Republicans are refusing to extend the payroll tax cut for another year. That tax cut would benefit every single taxpayer, but since it isn't explicitly targeted to "job creators," it doesn't count.
- Taxes on "job creators" are much lower today than they were before the Bush tax cuts took effect in 2001, yet the number of employed Americans has dropped from 132.5 million to 131.2 million during that same stretch of time. (Meanwhile, the population increased by 27 million, so the story is even worse than the raw numbers suggest.)