With today's report of 256,000 new jobs in December, we have created over 16.6 million jobs over the course of my administration and this is the only administration in history to have created jobs every single month. Although I inherited the worst economic crisis in decades with unemployment above 6% when I took office, we've had the lowest average unemployment rate of any administration in 50 years with unemployment at 4.1% as I leave. Although forecasts were projecting it would take years to achieve a full recovery, we have had the strongest growth and employment creation of any advanced country, brought inflation back down, and achieved the soft landing that few thought was possible. My administration has achieved record high employment rates for working age women and the lowest black-white unemployment gap on record. Incomes are up almost $4,000 more than prices.
There is more to do to lower costs, but we've taken action to lower prescription drug prices, health insurance premiums, utility bills, and gas prices that will pay dividends for years to come. This has been a hard-fought recovery, but we've made progress for working families, showing what can be accomplished when we build from the middle out and bottom up.
