Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney is promising that unemployment will be at 6 percent or lower by the end of his first four years in office. During a Wednesday interview, Time magazine’s Mark Halperin asked the candidate to be specific about how many Americans would looking for a job at the end of his first year as president.
“I can’t precisely predict what the unemployment rate will be at the end of one year,” Romney admitted. “I can tell you that over period of four years by virtue of the policies we put in place, we will get the unemployment rate down to 6 percent and perhaps a little lower.”
As the unemployment rate hit a three-year low of 8.1 percent earlier this month, the former governor blasted President Barack Obama and claimed that 4 percent should be the goal.
“Just this morning there was some news that came across the wire that said that the unemployment rate has dropped to 8.1 percent,” the former Massachusetts governor told a group of supporters in Pittsburgh. “And normally, that would be cause for celebration, but, in fact, anything over 8 percent, anything near 8 percent — anything over 4 percent is not a cause for celebration.”
