Obama to Visit Unemployment Capital, Promote Jobs

Aug. 5, 2009— -- President Obama plans to pay anorther visit today to Elkhart, Ind. -- a city that has become a poster child for the nation's unemployment problem -- to speak about the economy and warn the public that it will take some time for jobs to return.

The president visited Elkhart back in February as part of a tour to gain public support for the $787 billion stimulus plan that eventually passed Congress. This trip will focus on "some innovative ways" that can address creating jobs over the long term, according to Obama's press secretary Robert Gibbs.

A year ago, this northern Indiana community was prospering. At the start of the recession in December 2007, unemployment in Elkhart and the surrounding area was just 4.8 percent. But things quickly fell apart in the city. Several big recreational vehicle manufacturers slashed jobs. Then their suppliers followed with layoffs.

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By the time Obama visited in February unemployment had skyrocketed to 18 percent, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That means that nearly one out of every five people who wanted to work couldn't find a job.

Unemployment has improved marginally, with 16.8 percent of the population unemployed and looking for work in June, although that may not reflect all the people who don't have jobs, because often people will give up searching after a year.