The types of jobs matter. Wages matter. Percentage of the workforce with jobs matter. Dig deeper into the stats instead of cherry picking. As in most things in life, a few simple stats don't explain things. Do some real research on where we actually stand economically. Politicians take both blame and credit for things they really don't control. The real damage of government policies often take a long time to manifest itself. Do yourself a favor and make a real commitment to understanding what is really going on instead of grasping a few talking points you might hear from a talking head. The average person is simply a tool to be used and manipulated by both sides of the aisle. If you think your side of the aisle is any better than the other side you are sadly mistaken and very naive.