Bill Clinton’s DNC Speech Offers Stunning But True Jobs Claims

When former United States President Bill Clinton took the stage for his DNC speech this year he made a stunning claim, that Democrats have more than doubled jobs over Republicans since 1961. It turns out that number is true — at least on the surface.

During his speech on Wednesday Clinton told a cheering crowd of Democrat supporters:

“What’s the job score? Republicans, 24 million; Democrats, 42 [million].

Clinton then told the cheering crowd:

“It turns out that advancing equal opportunity and economic empowerment is both morally right and good economics. Why? Because poverty, discrimination and ignorance restrict growth. When you stifle human potential, when you don’t invest in new ideas, it doesn’t just cut off the people who are affected; it hurts us all.”

Clinton’s job rate numbers came from a Bloomberg Government report that was first published in May 2012. That report examined verifiable figures for private-sector job growth dating all the way back to 1961.

While Clinton’s numbers might be true, it is always hard to determine exactly what role the current President has had on employment rates. For example it has been argued that the stifled policy of one President can leave the next President with a failing jobs sector. Under that argument Bill Clinton repealing the Glass-Steagall act which separated investment banking from consumer banking may have led to banks that were “too big to fail” and hence left George W. Bush with a devastated economy. At the same time George W. Bush’s policies may have left President Obama with the unemployment mess he has been forced to face.

With a rather large gap in job hiring numbers being faced by the Republican party it is very likely that the GOP will argue the idea that Democrats continually mess up hiring for their Republican counterparts as they take office.

Do you think the Dems or the Reps create more jobs with their policies?