Unemployment Rises to 9.8% in January

Do you remember when the media was up in arms at 5% unemployment under Bush?

According to Gallup, unemployment rose slightly in January to 9.8%.

From Dennis Jacobe at Gallup:

"Unemployment, as measured by Gallup without seasonal adjustment, increased to 9.8% at the end of January -- up from 9.6% at the end of December, but down from 10.9% a year ago.

[...]

"Comparing Gallup's unemployment and underemployment rates so far in 2011 with those for the same periods in 2010 provides something of a seasonally adjusted view of Gallup's jobs data. Unemployment and underemployment are now at least one point below the rates of a year ago, reflecting modest improvement over the past year.

"Still, Gallup's measures paint a real-time picture of the current job realities on the ground: nearly 1 in 10 Americans in the U.S. workforce are unemployed, nearly one out of five are underemployed, and the nation's overall hiring situation has not improved over the past four to six months."

Combine this with a possible 300% increase in foreclosures, and the economic future doesn't look so rosy. I guess we didn't know Obama's Recovery Summer would be followed by Spring Slide. I'm sure it's somehow all Bush and the GOP's fault though...