Pennsylvania’s Governor Tom Corbett received some serious backlash following a remark he made during a radio interview. He said that companies are having to leave job openings unfilled due to every job applicant testing positive for drugs. Yes, it seems as if Pennsylvania’s unemployed are flying high. While the Governor may believe what he’s saying, the state’s Democratic party thought differently. One prominent Democrat, Treasurer Rob McCord, saw it as an opportunity to show why he’s leading the Governor in polls with a 44% favorable rating versus a dismal 35% for the Governor. This video shows exactly why this is the case:
While some may dismiss the criticism as purely political, there is some truth behind the assertions that the Governor is not taking responsibility for his inability to create jobs. The state’s unemployment rate of 7.8% remains above the national average of 7.6%. This may not seem like much of a difference, but when comparing the longer term picture, it does look impressive. The fact is, the state began the Great Recession with an unemployment rate of 8.7%, which is over a full point lower than the national average of 9.9% during the same period.
As for the claim that employers can’t find anyone to fit the jobs due to positive drug test results, it simply doesn’t hold water. His false claim is made worse by the fact that Pennsylvanians actually test lower (3.8%) than the national average (4.1%). The two facts simply don’t correlate.
While the Governor cries foul over the reactions, it seems that voters aren’t buying it. He’s in hot water and in deep trouble when those unemployed voters go to the polls. He can try to backtrack all he wants, but the hard-working people of Pennsylvania surely don’t like it when people in positions of power call them lazy drug users. If Corbett is to save himself, he’d better get cracking and get those unemployed into jobs.
Edited by AEK
Published by CB