Through his campaign and the first presidential debate, Mitt Romney asserted that job growth is the most important topic in the election.
In order to support Romney’s position, President Obama’s actions must be addressed. One of Obama’s first actions in office was an enormous stimulus package called the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. According to the Washington Examiner, Obama’s economic advisors Christina Romer and Jared Bernstein, estimated that the stimulus package would steer unemployment away from levels above 8 percent, leading it to about 6 percent today. The stimulus was meant to alleviate the unemployment levels during the recession by creating and protecting jobs, according to recovery.gov. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment in 2009 was 9.3 percent. It increased to 9.6 in 2010. The amount of the stimulus was increased from the original $787 billion. The level crawled down to 8.9 percent in 2011. Currently, unemployment stands at 7.8 percent. Although the unemployment rate decreased from the original percentage, the amount of spending outpaced the benefit by a significant amount. Obama’s advisors, representing his own administration, failed to keep the promise of lowering the unemployment rate significantly.
While job growth is unsuccessful in Obama’s presidency, the motivation to work became a bigger issue than ever. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, although more jobs were created, labor force participation declined by about two percent since Obama was inaugurated. A decrease by two percent may not seem like a lot, but when the American population is about 313 million, according to usnews.com, more than 62 million of those people have stopped working. In addition is the portion of adults in that population who still could not find work from the nadir of the recession and may have lost hope. Other slumps in the economy persist: increasing food, health care and energy prices, decreasing house values, and more.
The economy barely budges even with massive spending. In fact, the accumulating debt only makes the United States move backward. Not only is our country in debt to countries like China, but competition as well. Expert entrepreneur tactics, not partisan politics, only seem necessary to ensure that America’s economy remains strong. Romney was a successful businessman, co-founding Bain Capital, which helped over 100 businesses, according to his website.
Of course, Romney understands that heading towards maximum employment is the first step for America. He also knows that there are more complex ways than Obama’s method of government spending to create jobs. To prove his dedication to the topic, Romney and his advisors mapped out an 87-page plan called “Believe in America” just for job growth. To sum up his aspirations in the publication is Romney’s five point plan. First is energy independence in the United States by 2020. Second is promoting fair trade practices, especially in China, and opening markets to more American products. Third is improving access to and quality of education and job training. Fourth is to control the size of the government and national debt and shrinking the deficit. Fifth is focusing on accomplishments of small business by less regulation and taxes. The plan, as a whole, strives to improve the quality and quantity of American workers while making the United States a business-friendly market.
Many of his critics charge that he is not clear with his plan for strengthening the economy. But for those who will search deep for the facts, they are right on his campaign website. Romney also gave many ideas about his propositions in the first debate. He has demonstrated that he has more experience and innovative ideas than Obama to create jobs for America.

By Emily Leayman