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On May 8, President Joe Biden had an interview with CNN anchor Erin Burnett. During the interview, Burnett asked Biden about his ability to create jobs where former President Donald Trump was not successful. Biden responded by claiming to have created over 15 million jobs during his presidency and criticized Trump’s job creation record, stating apart from President Herbert Hoover, Trump was the only president to lose more jobs than he created.
However, one key fact to consider is the effect of the global COVID-19 pandemic on employment figures. Before the pandemic, Trump’s employment record was strong with the number of employed Americans reaching over 156.6 million in October 2018, and the unemployment rate hitting record lows across various demographics including women, blacks, Latinos, Asians and youth. The pandemic, and the enforced severe lockdowns, caused significant job losses, with non-farm payroll employment in the United States declining by 9.4 million in 2020.
Biden also claimed in the interview that he brought down inflation from 9% to its current level. This claim is incorrect as inflation was actually at 1.4% when he came into office, reportedly due to the pandemic. CNN has received criticism for not fact-checking these comments during or after the interview. The network’s fact-checker, Daniel Dale, notably has not appeared following the interview to verify Biden’s claims.
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