Robert Ricker, Melbourne, Fla.
The Republican Party wants us to believe that the unemployment rate of 8.2 percent reflects negatively on Obama's economic policies. My question is, compared to what?
The Euro area's current unemployment is 11 percent, Spain's is 24 percent, France 9.8 percent, India 9.4 percent, Ireland 14.3 percent, Italy 10.2 percent, Egypt 12.4 percent, Saudi Arabia 10.5 percent and Greece 22 percent.
In 2009 our unemployment during the great recession reached 9.9 percent at that time the United Kingdom was at 8.1 percent. Today our unemployment has gone down to 8.2 percent and the United Kingdom has gone up to 8.2 percent. The Euro area went from 9.4 percent in 2009 to a current rate of 11 percent. Again, Obama is doing a poor job compared to what?
Finally, during the Great Depression unemployment reached 24.9 percent; during the recession of early 1980s unemployment reached 10.8 percent during Reagan's presidency. Obama was able to reverse the trend in unemployment during the worst worldwide recession in our history.