New Data Show the 10 States with the Lowest Unemployment Numbers Are All Republican-Run
A new report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows a stark disparity between the unemployment rates in states run by Republicans and the jobless rate in Democrat-run states.
The report shows that GOP-led Nebraska, with a rate of 2.3 percent, had the lowest unemployment rate for July.
Democrat-run Nevada, at 7.7 percent, had the highest unemployment rate for July, narrowly beating out the Democrat-run states of New York, New Mexico and California, which were at 7.6 percent.
Rounding out the top 10 states for low unemployment were Utah, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Idaho, Vermont, Alabama, Oklahoma, Montana and Georgia. All are led by the GOP.
The bottom 10 states were all led by Democrats, with New Jersey, Hawaii, Connecticut, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Louisiana rounding out the states with the highest unemployment.
“Republican governors and legislatures are leading the nation in jobs recovered and getting Americans back to work. Thanks to common-sense, conservative leadership, Americans in Republican states have opportunity and freedom,” said RNC spokesperson Nathan Brand said in a statement.
“Meanwhile, Joe Biden and Democrat-led states continue to push failed, reckless tax and spend policies, mandates, and restrictions.”
The RNC did the math and found that the average unemployment rate for the 27 states with Republican governors was 4.3 percent, while that for Democrats was 5.9 percent.
According to the RNC, the top four states in jobs gains since the pandemic hit are led by Republicans — Utah, Idaho, Montana and Arizona.
Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts said his state is making history with its recovery, according to KLIN-AM.
“Our unemployment rate has matched our historical low and we continue to have the lowest unemployment rate in the nation,” he said. “Nebraskans are tough, hardworking people, and they are powering Nebraska’s current economic boom. With tens of thousands of open jobs, there are great opportunities for people of all backgrounds here in the Good Life.”
Creighton University economist Ernie Goss said there are challenges to lowering unemployment further, KPVI-TV reported.
“Federal stimulus payments, which incentivize not working, account for a portion of the shortage,” Goss said. “Other factors include the lack of child care and fear of the coronavirus in the workplace.”
In an Op-Ed he wrote for the Idaho Business Review, Republican Sen. Jim Risch of Idaho noted that federal handouts are hurting efforts by employers to hire the workers they need.
“For close to half of Idaho’s workforce, there was more money available on federally enhanced unemployment than by earning a paycheck. When combined with stimulus payments and child income tax credits, there was no incentive to get back on the job, even as COVID-19 vaccines became available and job postings grew abundant,” he wrote.
“The idea that a paycheck is earned is a foundational American value. Our country was built by people who responsibly worked hard to make a living to care for their families and communities. Their work ethic formed the bedrock of American enterprise and innovation that we enjoy to this day. But the Biden administration has done more than any in our history to separate the connection between work and money, treating them as unrelated concepts instead of instilling those core values in the next generation. That decoupling poses an existential threat to America’s economic future,” the senator went on.
“Our free-market system is what made the U.S. the most successful country on earth. When the government wades too far in, market incentives get warped and the market stops being so effective. While there’s no silver bullet for the labor market problem, we must do all we can to help people get off government assistance and become gainfully employed. That begins with ending enhanced unemployment benefits, opposing wasteful federal spending and making it easier for people to get back on the job.”
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