According to the White House, the federal stimulus program has saved or created nearly 650,000 jobs via aid to states, infrastructure projects and federal contracts. Consumer confidence and spending is up. Investment markets are active. And officials believe they are on track to meet their goal of 3.5 million jobs over the next two years. So is the recession over?
“There is strong and mounting evidence that the recovery act is putting people back to work,” Vice-President Joe Biden said at a news conference in Washington on Friday, where he noted that economists have credited the stimulus with helping grow the economy over the last quarter. This most recent jobs report came only a day after the government announced the economy grew by 3.5 percent during the quarter that ended in September, ending the longest economic contraction since World War II. But while many economists credit the $787 billion stimulus program with spurring some of that growth, unemployment still remains at a substantial 9.8%, and many economists predict that figure will rise even higher before the economy adds jobs again.
So, it appears we’re not out of the water yet. But at least we’re not sinking like before.
Long as people in my family and my friends and neighbors are out of work I can't say this recession is over. Unemployment is still major a problem.