Jobs Report Won’t End Anxiety

New jobs report better than expected but down from last year’s average. NYT: “… the latest figures for hiring were down from last year’s average of roughly 190,000 and fell a bit short of what policy makers had been hoping to see at this stage of the recovery.”

Long-term unemployment worsening. WSJ: “The number of Americans who have been out of work for 27 weeks or longer rose in February by 203,000 to 3.8 million. Federal funding for extended unemployment benefits expired at the end of December, which could push many of the long-term unemployed either to take jobs or drop out of the workforce entirely.”

GOP Offers Its Own Jobless Aid Bill

Republicans introduce a competing unemployment insurance bill. National Journal: “The Republican plan would extend the benefits … for five months including retroactive benefits … expir[ing] again for all beneficiaries in late May … the proposal would require beneficiaries to accept any offer of ‘suitable work’ or any position recommended to them by a state employment agency … The Republican plan would pay for the five-month extension by extending customs user fees through 2024, preventing beneficiaries from also receiving Social Security Disability Insurance and extending pension smoothing … Republicans rejected the latter offset earlier in the negotiations.”

Still no deal with Dems. Politico: “…there’s little intersection on the most nettlesome division of all: How to pay for the bill. Still, the back-and-forth offers a glimmer of hope for those who have lost benefits … A vote on unemployment insurance could come as early as next week, though two snow days this week could complicate that schedule.”

Bad Day for Paul Ryan

Ryan anti-poverty speech at CPAC marred by bogus closing anecdote. W. Post’s Glenn Kessler: “This was an interesting statement made by the 2012 GOP vice presidential candidate, equating [free] school lunches to an ‘empty soul.’ … [But] the tale [is ripped] out of its original context … the [original] person telling the story actually is an advocate for the federal programs that Ryan now claims leaves people with ‘a full stomach and an empty soul.’”

Krugman slams Ryan poverty report: “Unfortunately, the research he cites doesn’t actually support his assertions. Even more important, his whole premise about why poverty persists is demonstrably wrong … somehow their notion of aiding the poor involves slashing benefits while cutting taxes on the rich. Funny how that works.”

Embattled GOP governor in Pennsylvania moves to avert food stamp cuts. Daily Kos’ Laura Clawson: “…Corbett is following the lead of Gov. Dannel Malloy in Connecticut and Gov. Andrew Cuomo in New York, both Democrats, to avoid cuts in food stamps. Corbett will increase the amount of Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program benefits to $20 for households that would otherwise lose Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits … Corbett faces a tough re-election campaign this year, but whatever his motivation, this will prevent real suffering in his state …”

NH Republican Senate votes to expand Medicaid under Obamacare. NYT: “New Hampshire would join a small group of states, including Arkansas and Iowa, that have opted to expand health care to low-income adults with programs that focus not on expanding their existing Medicaid programs, as 25 other states and Washington, D.C., have done, but on using federal Medicaid money to buy private health insurance.”

California’s turnaround debunks many conservative myths, says NYT’s Timothy Egan: “Just a few years ago California was a punching bag for conservative scolds … Mitt Romney compared California to bankrupt Greece. Texas Governor Rick Perry said it was anti-business … Now some recent headlines: ‘California Projects $4.6 Billion Surplus.’ ‘California Among the National Leaders in Job Creation.’ … the California turnaround does prove some things … raising taxes does not kill job creation [and] one-party Democratic rule does not have to mean freewheeling spending.”