Watch: Rand Paul Says We Must Hurt The Long-Term Unemployed To Help Them

After President Obama used his weekly address to call on Congress to extend unemployment insurance for the 1.3 million Americans — including 20,000 veterans — who have been out of work for more than 26 weeks, Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) offered the counterpoint on Fox News Sunday.

“I do support unemployment benefits for the 26 weeks that they’re paid for. If you extend it beyond that, you do a disservice to these workers,” he said. “When you allow people to be on unemployment insurance for 99 weeks, you’re causing them to become part of this perpetual unemployed group in our economy.”

The Congressional Budget Office estimates the extension would save 300,000 jobs. In just the first two months of fiscal year 2014, the federal deficit is already down $61 billion.

While the unemployment rate is at a five-year low, millions are out of work and the long-term unemployed are suffering the most as this chart from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities shows.

Typically, long-term benefits are not cut until the long-term unemployment rate is around 1.3 percent. It is currently more than double that. Economist Justin Wolfers demonstrated that cutting extended benefits was heretofore unheard of, with this chart:

Cutting benefits for the long-term unemployed at a time like this is unprecedented. Yet that’s what Congress proposes pic.twitter.com/qhVX6ccMyf — Justin Wolfers (@JustinWolfers) December 6, 2013

He clarified his point with this note:

Context: Prez Bush passed benefits for the long-term unemployed when unemployment was 5.6%. Now Congress wants to cut them when it’s 7.0%.

— Justin Wolfers (@JustinWolfers) December 6, 2013

//www.youtube.com/embed/VrKF1cCTafI

 

A version of this article originally appeared in The National Memo and is republished here by permission.