[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 10]
[House]
[Page 13924]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




              THE CONTINUED IMPROVING STATE OF OUR ECONOMY

  (Mr. WELDON of Florida asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. WELDON of Florida. Mr. Speaker, the numbers from the month of May 
reveal that the American people are improving their lives under the 
leadership of George W. Bush and the Republican Congress.
  Two-hundred-and-forty-eight thousand jobs were created in May, and 
more than 1 million jobs have been created over the last 100 days. The 
unemployment rate is down to 5.6 percent. This is lower than the 
averages in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. Homeownership has risen to the 
highest level ever at 68.6 percent. Real disposable personal income is 
up 3.9 percent. Consumer confidence is up and business investment in 
equipment and software is up at an annual rate of 14 percent, and the 
stock market is up 18 percent.
  Now, some Republicans may try to take all the credit for the economic 
growth we have been witnessing. However, we can only take credit for 
freeing up the American people from the burdens of high taxes and 
government intrusion. We Republicans removed those barriers, and the 
economy improved due to the ingenuity and the entrepreneurial spirit of 
the American people.

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