Creating Job Creation? Lawmakers Question Obama Administration Stimulus Claims

Nov. 17, 2009— -- Leading members of Congress from both parties are promising increased scrutiny of the Obama administration's data on job creation, amid widespread errors in official stimulus data reported by the federal government.

A raft of reports of questionable or downright faulty jobs numbers -- including many uncovered by ABC News that show dozens of jobs created and millions of dollars spent in congressional districts that don't exist -- has cast a harsh spotlight on the jobs claims connected to the $787 billion stimulus package.

The Obama administration stands by its claim that the stimulus "saved or created" 1 million jobs. But the reporting process has involved errors: The administration chose not to include some 60,000 jobs reported by recipients as products of stimulus spending, citing "unrealistic data."

The Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board says the errors are the result of mistaken information submitted to the federal government, and are not evidence of fraud or lax oversight.

But the questions swirling over the official job claims threaten to undercut the administration's credibility on a key priority -- at the very time that Democrats start to shape a new jobs bill, with the nation facing double-digit unemployment.

House Appropriations Chairman David Obey is calling the inaccuracies on Recovery.gov, the $18 million Web site that's tracking stimulus spending, "outrageous," and called on the Obama administration to immediately fix problems that have come to light.

"The administration owes itself, the Congress, and every American a commitment to work night and day to correct the ludicrous mistakes," said Obey, D-Wis. "Credibility counts in government and stupid mistakes like this undermine it. We've got too many serious problems in this country to let that happen."