The projection of 1.9 million new jobs, a 1 percentage point drop in the unemployment rate and a 2 percentage point increase in the gross domestic product under Obama 's plan came from Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody ' s Analytics. "I assumed that it would be paid for," Zandi said. "I didn 't know when I did that simulation how the president proposed to pay for it." Zandi said his job-creation figure only applies to 2012. "Beginning in 2013, and certainly into 2014, the plan is a drag on the economy because the stimulus starts fading away, "he said. "So by 2015, the economy is in the same place as now, as if there were no jobs package." Also, Zandi said, his forecast does not leave any room for a new recession. The Obama-Zandi target of 1.9 million new jobs next year, or 158,000 a month, is somewhat higher than private analyses that suggest the plan would create 100,000 to 150,000 jobs a month. As long as the GDP grows at an annual rate beneath 2.5 percent, it cannot create enough jobs for new entrants into the workforce, let alone to re-employ those laid off during the downturn, said Martin Regalia, chief economist for the US Chamber of Commerce, the nation 's biggest business lobby. The chamber estimates it will take 20 million jobs over the next decade to get the economy back to pre-recession levels. It has its own jobs plan, which includes increased trade, greater oil drilling, quicker road and bridge construction and temporary corporate tax breaks. "If you want to go from 9.1 percent down to 5.5 or 6 percent unemployment, you 're going to have to grow roughly at 4.5 percent (GDP) for three years," Regalia said. "I don 't see that in the forecast." (Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com …
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