HUFFINGTON POST: …Some conservatives have accused the Bureau of Labor Statistics of cooking the September jobs report numbers to help Obama. But given how the government collects and reports the monthly data, those claims are probably baseless.
The rallying cry of the conspiracy theorists was sounded by former General Electric CEO Jack Welch. After the BLS announced that the unemployment rate fell in September to 7.8 percent, the lowest level since January 2009, Welch tweeted: “Unbelievable jobs numbers..these Chicago guys will do anything..can’t debate so change numbers.” Other prominent conservatives parroted the conspiracy theory…
But it just isn’t so. The monthly jobs numbers are put together by career government analysts, using long-established statistical methods that are shielded from political influence. Until recently, the BLS was run by an appointee from the Bush administration, and it currently has no political appointees… (more)
EDITOR: It is not unheard of for people to accuse others of their own sins. When at GE, at times Jack Welch may have manipulated quarterly reports so that they showed a steady trend of improvement.
8.1 or 7.8, who cares! Millions remain unemployed or underemployed or trapped in jobs beneath their ability.