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Politics Republican Unemployment

Shutting Down The Republican Lie That “23 Million People Are Unemployed”

Mitt Romney has used this talking point in the debates and he uses it all the time on the campaign trail. He never states where this information came from, because accurate information is not necessary in Republican world. And his mouthpieces are now using the same talking point, but today, one person stood up for the truth.

Her name is Neera Tanden. She was a guest on the Melissa Perry Show this morning, and responding to the talking-point, Ms Tanden said, “23 million people aren’t unemployed. This is something that Mitt Romney says, it’s not true. We have an under-employment problem.”

And the record reflects Neera Tanden’s point. According to CNN reporting, “the U.S. Labor Department, which puts out the official government jobs data, counts 12.8 million people as unemployed — not 23 million.

“Even if you add in unemployed people who are not counted in that total because they are not actively looking for work — a category the Labor Department terms “marginally attached” — that number rises to just over 15.3 million.”

But again, Republican never let facts get in the way of a good talking point.

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