Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C.- Today, Congressman Rob Wittman (VA-01) released the following statement in response to May’s Jobs Report:

“It’s no longer a matter of ‘Building Back Better,’ but a matter of ‘Building Back At All,” said Wittman. “May’s jobs report was, thankfully, better than last month’s but continues to lag behind expectations. Thanks to the irresponsible provisions of President Biden’s previous COVID-19 relief package, millions of Americans choose to remain unemployed rather than re-enter the workforce, hampering our economic recovery. Even President Biden himself seems to admit his policies will fail to achieve our growth potential, as his recently proposed budget only forecasts 1.9% GDP growth- a stark departure from earlier CBO expectations of 3.7% growth following the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“Already, the prices of everyday goods depended upon by small businesses and working-class Americans, including gasoline and lumber, have skyrocketed, hampering our economic recovery. But President Biden’s pocketbook pains don’t stop there. The inflationary effects of President Biden’s massive spending proposals, which are somehow left unaccounted for in President Biden’s recently released budget, would cause the price of goods to continue to rise, effectively serving as a hidden tax on every American. Moreover, President Biden intends to break his promise not to raise taxes on families making less than $400,000/year by allowing the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act to expire, enabling the largest sustained tax hike in American history.

“Under all these pressures, it’s no wonder our economy continues to lag behind expectations. And as these pressures continue to go into effect, we can only expect their economic impacts to grow worse. I sincerely urge President Biden to prioritize our nation’s economic growth by reducing his proposed spending to responsible levels and by preserving the successful Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.” 

May’s jobs report failed to meet job-creation expectations, creating only 559,000 nonfarm jobs, despite a 671,000-job expected estimate. The unemployment rate, accounting only for those actively seeking a job, met expectations, coming in at 5.8%, with an expected estimate of 5.9%.