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02-18-2004, 04:37 PM
White House Backs Off Job-Growth Forecast
By TERENCE HUNT, AP
WASHINGTON (Feb. 18) - The White House backed away Wednesday from its own
prediction that the economy will add 2.6 million new jobs before the end of
this year, saying the forecast was the work of number-crunchers and that
President Bush was not a statistician.
Bush, himself, stopped short of echoing the prediction.
''I think the economy's growing, and I think it's going to get stronger,'' said
Bush, the nation's first MBA president. He said he was pleased that 366,000 new
jobs have been added since August. ''But I'm mindful there are still people
looking for work, and we've got to continue building on the progress we've made
so far.''
The administration's refusal to back its own jobs estimate brought criticism
from John Kerry, the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination.
''Now George Bush is saying he's going to create 2.6 million jobs this year
alone - and his advisors are saying, 'What, you didn't actually believe that,
did you?' Apparently George Bush is the only person left in the country who
actually believes the far-fetched promises he's peddling,'' Kerry said in a
statement.
White House press secretary Scott McClellan, asked repeatedly about the
forecast, declined to embrace the prediction which was contained in the annual
economic report of the White House Council of Economic Advisers.
Unemployment and the slow pace of job creation are political liabilities for
Bush as he heads into a battle for re-election. Despite strong economic growth,
the nation has lost about 2.2 million jobs since he became president.
The jobs forecast was the second economic flap in recent days for the White
House. Last week, Bush was forced to distance himself from White House
economist N. Gregory Mankiw's assertion that the loss of U.S. jobs overseas has
long-term benefits for the U.S. economy.
Asked about the 2.6 million jobs forecast, McClellan said, ''The president is
interested in actual jobs being created rather than economic modeling.''
He quoted Bush as saying, ''I'm not a statistician. I'm not a predictor.''
''We are interested in reality,'' McClellan said
He said the annual economic report was based on data from about three months
ago. Since then, Bush has said that things are improving.
The issue arose at the White House after Treasury Secretary John W. Snow and
Commerce Secretary Don Evans declined to endorse the jobs prediction and said
it was based on economic assumptions that have an inherent margin of error.
They spoke during a tour through Oregon and Washington to promote the
president's economic agenda.
''The number-crunchers will do their job. The president's job is to make sure
we're creating as robust an environment as possible for job-creation,''
McClellan said. ''That's where his focus is.''
''This is economic modeling. ... some have said it would be lower,'' he said.
''The president has said he is not a statistician. He is most concerned about
whether people are hurting and able to find jobs,'' McClellan said.
''The economy is moving in the right direction ... but there is more to do,''
he said.
By TERENCE HUNT, AP
WASHINGTON (Feb. 18) - The White House backed away Wednesday from its own
prediction that the economy will add 2.6 million new jobs before the end of
this year, saying the forecast was the work of number-crunchers and that
President Bush was not a statistician.
Bush, himself, stopped short of echoing the prediction.
''I think the economy's growing, and I think it's going to get stronger,'' said
Bush, the nation's first MBA president. He said he was pleased that 366,000 new
jobs have been added since August. ''But I'm mindful there are still people
looking for work, and we've got to continue building on the progress we've made
so far.''
The administration's refusal to back its own jobs estimate brought criticism
from John Kerry, the front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination.
''Now George Bush is saying he's going to create 2.6 million jobs this year
alone - and his advisors are saying, 'What, you didn't actually believe that,
did you?' Apparently George Bush is the only person left in the country who
actually believes the far-fetched promises he's peddling,'' Kerry said in a
statement.
White House press secretary Scott McClellan, asked repeatedly about the
forecast, declined to embrace the prediction which was contained in the annual
economic report of the White House Council of Economic Advisers.
Unemployment and the slow pace of job creation are political liabilities for
Bush as he heads into a battle for re-election. Despite strong economic growth,
the nation has lost about 2.2 million jobs since he became president.
The jobs forecast was the second economic flap in recent days for the White
House. Last week, Bush was forced to distance himself from White House
economist N. Gregory Mankiw's assertion that the loss of U.S. jobs overseas has
long-term benefits for the U.S. economy.
Asked about the 2.6 million jobs forecast, McClellan said, ''The president is
interested in actual jobs being created rather than economic modeling.''
He quoted Bush as saying, ''I'm not a statistician. I'm not a predictor.''
''We are interested in reality,'' McClellan said
He said the annual economic report was based on data from about three months
ago. Since then, Bush has said that things are improving.
The issue arose at the White House after Treasury Secretary John W. Snow and
Commerce Secretary Don Evans declined to endorse the jobs prediction and said
it was based on economic assumptions that have an inherent margin of error.
They spoke during a tour through Oregon and Washington to promote the
president's economic agenda.
''The number-crunchers will do their job. The president's job is to make sure
we're creating as robust an environment as possible for job-creation,''
McClellan said. ''That's where his focus is.''
''This is economic modeling. ... some have said it would be lower,'' he said.
''The president has said he is not a statistician. He is most concerned about
whether people are hurting and able to find jobs,'' McClellan said.
''The economy is moving in the right direction ... but there is more to do,''
he said.
