Hoyer Statement on February Jobs Report

Statement

House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) released the following statement today after the Department of Labor released its jobs report for February:

"Today's report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics marks the sixtieth month of consecutive job growth for our private sector, with 288,000 new jobs created in February and 3.2 million over the last 12 months. The trend could not be more clear -- our recovery continues to put millions of Americans back to work.

"Congress's focus should be on building upon these gains to create an economy that is resilient and competitive in the twenty-first century. Instead, Republicans have created one manufactured crisis after another, such as the near-shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, which only sows uncertainty in the private sector. It's clear that there is a path for Republicans to work with Democrats, instead of catering to the far-right wing of their party, as partners to advance bipartisan proposals that we know will invest in our economic future. We ought to work together over the coming weeks to advance a fiscally sustainable budget resolution that provides a path to replacing the draconian sequester cuts, allowing us to invest in our long-term priorities. We should engage in the tough decisions necessary to rework and simplify our tax code so that businesses and families alike can more easily plan for their economic futures. And we can come together to pass comprehensive immigration reform -- something that will boost economic growth and help us cut the deficit.

"House Democrats are ready to partner with our Republican colleagues to make progress wherever possible. I hope we can find common ground to keep our jobs recovery moving forward and benefit even more Americans."

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