For Immediate Release: Contact: Kate Pomeroy / 703-638-3927
Unemployment Increases Among Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans
Arlington, VA – The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today that the national unemployment rate for December 2012 was 7.8 percent, essentially unchanged from previous months. In response, Pete Hegseth, CEO of Concerned Veterans for America (CVA), issued the following statement:
“When President Obama entered office in January 2009, the unemployment rate clocked in at 7.8 percent. Four years later, as the president prepares for his second inauguration, the unemployment rate is unchanged at 7.8 percent. This is what a stagnant economy looks like. “In the last four years, we have seen unprecedented federal stimulus spending; massive bailouts to favored industries and state and local governments; and historically high deficits and debt—all of which we were told were necessary to get this nation back to work. Yet the economy under President Obama’s administration is just treading water, barely. “For military veterans, the jobs picture is even more bleak. Post-9/11 veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan actually saw their unemployment rate increase to 10.8 percent; among the youngest of these veterans (age 18-24) the jobless rate is a jaw-dropping 22.7 percent. It is unconscionable that as our service personnel return to the private sector, nearly four years after the official end of the 2009 recession, we are unable to provide them with meaningful opportunities for careers. “How much longer will our leaders continue to pursue the same policies when those policies are shown to be a failure? We simply can’t afford any more of Washington’s status quo thinking. It’s time to try a new approach centered around restraint in government spending and pro-growth tax policies to boost private sector confidence and to restore the economy to health.”
To schedule an interview with Concerned Veterans for America, please contact Kate Pomeroy at 703-638-3927
Concerned Veterans for America is a nonpartisan, non-profit, 501(c)(4) organization that advocates for policies that will preserve the freedom and liberty we and our families so proudly fought and sacrificed to defend.