Story highlights
Friday's jobs report showed the unemployment rate was below 6 percent.
RNC Chairman and the Speaker of the House both took aim at Democrats.
The White House cheered the numbers: 'Our economy has bounced back'
Republicans have a response to the news Friday morning that U.S. unemployment dropped beneath 6% for the first time since 2008: “We can do better.”
“Slow job growth may be good enough for Democrats, but Republicans know we can do better,” Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus said in a statement. “While we’re glad to see some Americans finally finding work, we can’t lose sight of the fact that we should have been at this point years ago.”
House Speaker John Boehner also sounded off on the jobs report, knocking Democrats for refusing to vote on “dozens of good jobs bills” that Republicans passed in his chamber.
Boehner also accused President Barack Obama and Senate Democrats of presiding “over a new normal of flat wages, higher prices, and too many part-time jobs.”
“Every day I hear from people in my district who say no matter how hard they work, they still struggle to make ends meet,” Boehner said in a statement. “Instead of trying to convince Americans that things are great, Washington Democrats ought to show they’re serious about helping middle-class families get ahead, not just get by.”
Unemployment falls below 6% for first time since 2008
While Democrats as well said there was more work to be done, the Obama administration championed the better-than-expected jobs numbers.
Jason Furman, Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors, said the latest report represents the “longest streak of private-sector job gains on record.”
“The data underscore that six years after the Great Recession—thanks to the hard work of the American people and in part to the policies the President has pursued—our economy has bounced back more strongly than most others around the world,” Furman said.
Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer pointed out the jobs numbers in a statement and said he was “disappointed” with House Republican obstructionism.
“Congress must take action to ensure this growth continues,” Hoyer said in a statement.
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