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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: michael97123 who wrote (25613)	1/21/2004 9:02:31 PM
From: LindyBill	Respond to of 794501

Tsy Snow: Dec Jobs Data May Have Understated Job Growth Wednesday, January 21, 2004 05:16 PM ET WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--The December jobs report may have understated the strength of the labor market, U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow said in a radio talk-show interview Wednesday. Non-farm business payrolls in December rose by just 1,000 in December, the fifth straight month of job growth, but far less than the 150,000 gain Wall Street had expected "There is a big error factor in those numbers. They are estimates, and there is a big error factor and I think they may well have understated and we will see a restatement in the future," Snow said in an interview at the White House with North Dakota-based WDAY AM 970. "There's some question about the accuracy of these statistics," Snow said. Regardless of whether the December jobs figures are revised up, Snow said, " One observation isn't enough to tell you where things are going." He predicted there would continue to be "better results" on the jobs front. "We are still waiting for the jobs to come back the way we'd like to see them, " Snow said. Asked whether the administration will be successful in making its tax cuts permanent, Snow said it's going to be a tough battle in Congress. "I think we've got a real political fight on our hands. It's clear the congressional Democrats - with rare exception - are opposed to the president's tax-reduction plan, and they are opposed to making the tax cuts permanent," Snow said. "That is going to make it hard to get. But we are committed to doing it. Our priority is making these tax cuts permanent," Snow said. Snow's interview with WDAY was one of seven he was scheduled to do with radio talk shows Wednesday as part of "Radio Day" at the White House. More than 40 talk-show hosts from around the country descended on the north lawn of the White House, gathering in a heated tent to chat with top administration officials about U.S. President George W. Bush's State of the Union address Tuesday night. -By Deborah Lagomarsino, Dow Jones Newswires; 202-862-9255; deborah.lagomarsino@dowjones.com Dow Jones Newswires 01-21-04 1716ET Copyright 2004 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.