Marathon Pundit: Unemployment rate falls to 8.8 percent

The nationwide unemployment rate fell to 8.8 percent, the lowest in two years, but still higher than the 8 percent level that the White House promised the rate would not exceed when the stimulus bill was being peddled.

The private-sector added 230,000 jobs, while the public-sector laid off 14,000--for a net gain of 216,000.

The private-sector is the catalyst for the economy.

On Fox News, analyst Stuart Varney decried the plight of the long-term unemployed--there are over six million of them.

And Peter Roskam (R-IL), the House Chief Majority Whip, issued the following statement regarding the latest unemployment figures:

These numbers continue to show that our economy is moving in the right direction but not recovering nearly fast enough. For the millions of Americans still out of work, today is just one more painful reminder that Washington's rampant borrowing and spending has grown our debt, but not jobs. Yet even as the borrow, tax, and spend policies severely hurt our economy, Senate Democrats continue to put politics ahead of policy – refusing sensible spending cuts – and rooting for a shutdown.

That spending mentality, coupled with a constant drive to raise taxes, is a recipe for sustained economic disaster. It's evident in Illinois where major employers – most recently Caterpillar and Jimmy John's – signal that Illinois' new job-crushing tax increases may force them to relocate to better business environments. We can't expect the private sector to create jobs when faced with the highest corporate tax rate in the world, a $14 trillion national debt, and the constant threat of new Washington regulations and taxes. That's why Republicans are focused on removing barriers to job creation by stopping Washington from spending money it doesn't have, and implementing policies like fundamental tax reform, no-cost free trade agreements, and reform of harmful bureaucrat-driven regulations.