With the Bureau of Labor Statistics release Friday showing that the U.S. economy gained a more-than-expected 211,000 seasonally-adjusted jobs in November, the unemployment rate held steady around 5%. That’s good news for the economy--but, as Vox points out, it’s also a particular bragging right for President Obama’s second term.
When Obama fended off a challenge from Republican Mitt Romney in 2012, Romney frequently criticized the incumbent for his handling of the economic recovery. At the time, unemployment was just over 8%, and Romney promised that he would lower that rate at or below 6% by the end of his first term.
With a year left in Obama’s presidency, he’s already there. Now, the economy just has to hold steady--even as the Federal Reserve is widely expected to raise interest rates for the first time since 2006 later this month.
