After weeks of dismal news on jobs, a welcome surprise today: The economy actually added jobs in May — 2.5 million — and the unemployment rate, which was expected to hit as high as 20%, fell from 14.7% to 13.3%.
The Labor Department report credited the reopening of the economy for the good news, saying, “employment rose sharply in leisure and hospitality, construction, education and health services, and retail trade.”
President Trump seizing on the new numbers at a White House news conference.
"We had the greatest economy in the history of the world, and that strength helped us get through this horrible pandemic," he said.
In Delaware, presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden firing back.
“I was disappointed to hear the president crowing this morning, basically hanging a 'Mission Accomplished' banner out there, when there's so much work to be done, so many Americans are still hurting," Biden said.
The economy still has a long way to go to get back to where it was before the pandemic. But according to the latest numbers, the upswing appears to have begun.
