(Image source: University of Michigan)

BY CHRISTINA HARTMAN

Hiring is picking up -- according to the latest jobs report -- which shows the U.S. economy added a net 151,000 jobs in October. That’s more than double what analysts expected. Still - not enough to bring down the unemployment rate.


BLOOMBERG: “The jobless rate held at 9.6%.”


Not enough for critics...

HLN: “It's not enough jobs to make a big difference.”

And - not enough for President Obama.

PRES. BARACK OBAMA: “...an encouraging jobs report doesn't make a difference if you're still one of the millions of people who are looking for work. And I won't be satisfied until everybody who is looking for a job can find one.” (Video from Fox Business)


And the president might have his job cut out for him. A CNNMoney report suggests that 9.6 percent unemployment rate isn’t going to come down any time soon.


“The rate doesn't include 1.2 million discouraged workers who've stopped looking for a job. When hiring improves and those workers start looking again, the unemployment rate could rise.”



President Obama appealed to lawmakers to - quote - “put politics aside” and not get “mired in gridlock” in addressing job creation. But as MSNBC’s Chuck Todd suggests -- with a newly-Republican House and Democratically-controlled Senate -- that might be wishful thinking.


TODD: “I would assume any president who now suddenly doesn't have his party in the majority always loves to say, we don't want any gridlock. That isn't what we want. But realistically here, that’s where we’re headed for the short term, at least until public opinion says otherwise.” ...
CARL HULSE, NYT: “Republicans are feeling very empowered. They’ve been very aggressive. Mitch McConnell yesterday saying that he wants repeated votes to repeal the health care bill. That doesn't sound like cooperation to me right now.”


And from political gridlock to political spin - a blog for The Economist says watch out for both parties trying to claim responsibility for the growth in private-sector hiring.


“Republicans will probably claim that private employers got their mojo back as they began to anticipate a more business-friendly Congress. ... Similarly, the growth is inconsistent with the contribution of fiscal stimulus... The Fed might be able to take a bit more credit: the upturn in hiring seems to have coincided with ... when it hinted more quantitative easing was on the way.”


According to The New York Times, the latest jobs report also revised the numbers for August and September. The August data was revised to reflect a loss of 1,000 jobs instead of 57,000, and September was revised to 41,000 losses instead of 95,000.



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