This Single Jobs Stat Is the One That Matters

Blog post: Foreign-born Americans are finding jobs, while native-born Americans struggle
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 9, 2015 10:00 AM CDT
This Single Jobs Stat Is the One That Matters
Job seekers wait in line to meet with recruiters during a job fair in Philadelphia.   (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

You may have caught recent headlines about the nation's unemployment rate falling to 5.1%, a seven-year low. And you may have heard related arguments about how that stat is meaningless because so many people have stopped looking for work. But a blog post at Zero Hedge argues that there's one jobs-related stat that is important, especially in this immigration-centric election season: In August, nearly 700,000 native-born Americans lost their job, while about 200,000 foreign-born Americans gained one.

That alone is "enough to provide the Trump—and every other—campaign with enough soundbites and pivot points to last it for weeks on end," observes the post. And it's no fluke: Since 2007, about 800,000 native-born Americans have found jobs, a figured dwarfed by the 2.1 million foreign-born Americans who have done so. The result? "You have a combustible mess that will lead to serious fireworks during the next GOP primary." (Click for the full blog post.)

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