Have you seen Lisa?
Lisa Irwin was discovered missing around 4 a.m. Tuesday, on October 4, 2011, when her father returned home from work. Kansas City police officers and detectives, with the help of investigators with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, are working around the clock in an attempt to find Lisa Irwin. If you have any information on this child or her whereabouts, please call 911 or contact the TIPS Hotline at 816-474-8477.
The Employment Situation in September
Today, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the unemployment rate stood at 9.1 percent in September, 2011. As I have tried to do each month as we learn about our national employment situation, I would like to share with you information from the President's Council of Economic Advisers:
Today's employment report shows that private sector payrolls increased by 137,000 and overall payroll employment rose by 103,000 in September. The unemployment rate remained unchanged at 9.1 percent, a level that is unacceptably high. Despite a slowdown in economic growth from substantial headwinds experienced throughout the year, the economy has added private sector jobs for 19 straight months, for a total of 2.6 million jobs over that period.
Clearly, we need faster economic growth to put Americans back to work. Today's report underscores the President's call for Congress to pass the American Jobs Act to put more money in the pockets of working and middle class families; to make it easier for small businesses to hire workers; to keep teachers in the classroom; to put construction crews to work rebuilding our nation's infrastructure; and other measures that will help the economy grow while not adding to the deficit over ten years.
Sectors with employment increases in September included professional and business services (+48,000), health care and social assistance (+40,800), information (+34,000, which includes about 45,000 returning Verizon strikers), and construction (+26,000). Sectors with employment declines included government (-34,000) and manufacturing (-13,000). Local government lost 35,000 jobs, and has shed 383,000 jobs since February 2010, including 225,000 jobs in educational services.
The monthly employment and unemployment numbers are volatile and employment estimates are subject to substantial revision. Therefore, as the Administration always stresses, it is important not to read too much into any one monthly report. |
You do not need me, or a group of experts, or anyone for that matter to tell you that our economy is hurting. Those lucky enough to have a job are finding that their wages aren't going far enough. Those without a job are finding the search more of a struggle than they ever could have surmised. According to the Center for American Progress (CAP), unemployment has stayed high amid weak job growth. Long-term unemployment ballooned as the unemployment rate stayed high. For communities of color, young workers, and individuals with little education, the figures are even worse. The African American unemployment rate In September stayed high, at 16.0 percent, while the Hispanic unemployment rate remained at 11.3 percent. Youth unemployment increased to 26 percent. And the unemployment rate for people without a high school diploma stayed high with 13.3 percent, compared to 9.0 percent for those with a high school diploma, and 4.6 percent for those with a college degree.
Our country's most vulnerable groups have struggled disproportionately more amid the weak labor market of the past few years, moreso than white workers, older workers, and workers with more education. But even those groups that fare better than their counterparts in the weak labor market suffer tremendously from high and long-term unemployment. We still have much to do to get our economy back on track, and I know we are not moving quickly enough to help those who are truly in need. For more analysis and information on the economy, I encourage you to read the CAP's Economic Snapshot, here.
Lincoln's Legacy
On Monday, I was honored to participate in a discussion with my friends and colleagues. This discussion was part of The Lincoln Legacy Project, a five-year effort to create a dialogue in our nation's capital around the issues of tolerance, equality and acceptance. I know five years is not enough, but it is a start.
John Harris, editor-in-chief of Politico, moderated a panel discussion that included Congressman Keith Ellison (D-MN), Congressman Silvestre Reyes (D-TX), Congressman Mike Simpson (R-ID), and of course myself. We were asked to examine America as a nation of people with differing backgrounds, and points of view, while at the same time exploring the commonalities that unite all Americans regardless of our differences. The event began with a presentation by Jay Winik, one of the nation's leading historians and the author of the New York Times bestsellers April 1865 and The Great Upheaval.
 | Photo of The Honorable Silvestre Reyes, The Honorable Emanuel Cleaver II, The Honorable Mike Simpson, The Honorable Keith Ellison, Director of Ford's Theatre Paul Tetreault, John F. Harris.
Photo courtesy of Ford's Theatre Society |
We talked about many things, from civil rights, to education reform, to immigration, to civility in politics. My friend and colleague, Congressman Mike Simpson, do not always agree. But I hope he will forgive me for stealing his line of the night. He said, "If we cannot compromise, we cannot govern effectively." That, my friend, is a lesson for us all to learn, sooner rather than later.
Honor Flight!
On Wednesday, I had the supreme honor of meeting and visiting with thirty three veterans from the Fifth District. You may have heard of this incredible program, Honor Flight. The inaugural Honor Flight took place in May of 2005. Six small planes flew out of Springfield, Ohio taking twelve World War II veterans on a visit to the memorial in Washington, DC. Year after year, Honor Flight allows World War II veterans to visit Washington, D.C. at no cost to them, in honor of their sacrifice and service to America.
Here are the names of the individuals who visited the World War II Memorial on Wednesday:
Elisardo Alcarado
Ava Billings
Ray Boldan
Donald Booz
Robert Brackenbury
Charles Breit
Raymond Byers
Nathan Cheatham
Marcellus Cole
Harold Cole
James Conrad | Robert Cully
Harold Dillion
Eddie Dodds
Robert Eckert
John Ellis
Robert Ellis
Joseph Fredelake
Loren Gatton
Hiram Gensler
Melbert Haertling
Carl Hall | Jesse Hargrove
Warren Higley
Richard Humes
Paul Loffredo
Peter Parnell
Claude Pitts
Peter Samson
Fannie Simpson
John Sutton
Lewis Thompson
James Trotter |
We thank them for their service, and for allowing us to extend this small gesture of respect and gratitude to them and their families.
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Emanuel Cleaver, II
Member of Congress
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