By Bryan Lentz
April 21, 2010
In recent weeks we have seen signs that the economy is improving. We are certainly not back all the way, but the economy and the job market are definitely moving in the right direction.
As things get better, we must not forget that many families continue to struggle to make ends meet. Too many Americans are still unemployed and under-employed. Too many families find themselves crushed by mortgage debt or consumer debt. We cannot allow our leaders to become complacent. We cannot let Wall Street use their big bucks to pressure lawmakers to stop efforts to fix our broken financial system. (Click here to read my Plan for Jobs and the Economy, which includes the creation of a Consumer Financial Protection Agency.)
The best economic news is that the economy is once again creating jobs.The above graph shows job losses vs. job gains over the past couple of years. It's trending positive once again!
As I've said before, the best way to get our nation back on track is to create jobs for hard-working middle class Americans. To accomplish this, Congress must work to stabilize our economy, reduce unemployment and change the fundamental conditions of our financial system that led to this economic collapse. We need policies that focus on job creation, erasing the deficit, adapting to a changing economy, and increasing accountability for Wall Street firms and big banks.
Another positive sign is that the last two quarters have shown growth in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), after shrinking in four of the last five quarters.
At the same time, America's household wealth is recovering. After seven consecutive quarters of decline, we have now experienced three consecutive quarters of improvement. This growth is particularly important to Americans on pensions, who rely on their savings to survive.
The chief reason that household wealth has improved is that American investments have rebounded significantly. Since the Obama administration took office, the Dow Jones Industrial Average has closed over the 11,000 mark for the first time since the summer of 2008.
As I said, we're not back all the way, but we're heading in the right direction. For years Washington neglected the economy and Wall Street ran wild. Now we have started fixing the problems that caused the economy to implode less than two years ago. There's a lot of work to be done. The rules that allowed investment banks and hedge funds to make billions, while the economy collapsed, are still in effect. We need to amend those rules so that we don't repeat these disastrous mistakes. Unemployment is still too high. Our deficit is still growing.
The best way to improve the situations of millions of Americans remains the old-fashioned way: JOBS. Jobs that pay a living wage. Jobs that are performed by Americans in America and cannot be out-sourced. Jobs that build a stronger, more competitive America in an increasingly competitive world economy.
