Rand Paul’s Proof Against Extended Benefits Proves Him Wrong
I’m not against having unemployment insurance… I do think, though, that the longer you have it, that it does provide some disincentive to work and that there are many studies that indicate this.
- Sen. Rand Paul on ABC’s “This Week.”
Sen. Rand Paul was citing economist Rand Ghayad’s recent study on the effects of long-term unemployment as support on his stance against keeping Extended Unemployment Benefits.
According to Sen. Paul, Ghayad’s study, showing that employers are less-likely to hire candidates who’ve been unemployed for over six months, proves that extending benefits encourages candidates to stay unemployed for too long.
However, Ghayad categorically rejects Sen. Paul’s use of his study through an editorial in The Atlantic on December 30th, 2013. Instead, Ghayad asserts that his study confirms just the opposite of Sen. Paul’s stance, writing:
Just because companies discriminate against the long-term unemployed doesn’t mean long-term benefits are to blame.
- Rand Ghayad in “No, Rand Paul, There’s No Reason to Cut Unemployment Benefits,” from The Atlantic.
Over 1.3 million Americans stopped receiving Long-Term Unemployment Benefits on December 28th, 2013. Many more are slated to lose their benefits in the upcoming year.
Senate and House Democrats are lobbying to reinstate Extended Unemployment Benefits, but the GOP controlled House currently stands in their way.
by Paul Notice
The Notice Blog
01/08/14
