Jobs lag GDP growth. Just like in the Clinton years, where there was also a "jobless recovery". Just map the point in time where GDP was consistently above 3.0, (1996) then look where the jobs began to fall under 5.0. (1997)
And I would note that when the economy really took off, that it was in large part due to the wide adoption of the internet - it came to critical mass at this point in time(1). The ripple affects of which, are immeasurable, but include more servers, pc's, software, new business models and of course all kinds of new jobs. I find it difficult to credit that to the Clinton administration, unless of course, you believe that Al Gore invented the internet ;-)
1) In a July 1997 Speech, Lou Gerstner proclaimed the internet is open for business, noting that: "In the last twelve months alone, IBM has helped over ten thousand companies -- small, medium and large -- to seize the power of the Net to enter new markets, create new business offerings, extend their brand, and create growth and jobs." |
