I think you are right. Of course they are jobs, but do they add to the GDP, or are they a further drain on the private sector? The government can create a million jobs by fiat and make it seem as if the Titanic is not sinking for short term political gain (reporting positive economic numbers) at the expense of the future. Just kicking the can down the road.. whistling past the graveyard...

Well, doesn't the gross domestic product include government spending? Talk about misleading! Then we can begin to talk about the unemployment numbers- hee- hee

I agree, don't count government jobs.

No administration wants to do that however, since growing government is about the only accomplishment they have. Also leaving out those types of jobs make the job numbers even worse.

I agree, db, I would have looked at private sector jobs only. I would also have looked at the percentages of working people, and part time employment, and pay level of the jobs supposedly "created" compared to the ones lost.
It appears that the article and its stats are based on government sources which are biased to appear favorable for the party in power according to independent sources (e.g., http://www.shadowstats.com.)
I think the conclusion of better economy in "red" states may be true, but I think the source of stats is suspect.

Count government jobs? Not only, no, but Hell No!

The number of those jobs isn't an indicator of 'economic health'. Thanks for the link, db.

It would make more sense to see actual numbers categorized by type of employment, i.e., manufacturing, construction, medical, retail, government, etc compared against a base year. I doubt those numbers really exist in any meaningful manner. The unemployment numbers and percentages are nonsense numbers. Government at all levels should show civilian and contractor numbers as well.

Government and military jobs are a net drag on our economy and a burden to tax payers. They should NOT be included in the jobs number.
Generally, 'Red' states are better at allowing jobs to be created by reducing anti-competitive regulations and over taxation.
It always seem ridiculous to me that a business be taxed when everyone that works for that business...including the owner, are already taxed to death. Any funds a business or corporation holds is for hard times, future investments in new products and services and maintaining infrastructures.

Totally agree, government jobs do not count.

This is a classic missing the forest piece.
Check for poverty/job creation in lib run cities as well as states. Lefties create government "jobs".
Some lefties create real world jobs. Righties would love to work without interference to create more companies and more jobs.
Government is a place to warehouse the unproductive with jobs feeding the remaining non-productive lumps.

Red states tend to be better at creating an environment for job creation than blue states. Primarily because they interfere less.

Business and job creation would be a whole lot easier if they just stayed out of the way.

The premisses of the entire article are preposterous. Not only government jobs are non-productive (for the most part; there are some that are productive), but much of the so-called "private" sector are make-belief jobs that are dictated by the government. As such, they produce nothing and often are a detriment to the function of the economy and the society. We have millions of people puffing smoke, getting paid and taking up space, while holding back others from producing. Plus, when government looters steal and send some of the loot to a particular place of their choosing, and build a highway to nowhere, how is that "creating job"?
Frankly, these types of uneducated and uninformed articles (CNBC, what would you except?), are really not even worth the time.

Read Winning the Unwinnable War. You'll be cheered up.

Jim Wright

It isn't really jobs, however, but the economic output of those jobs that we really want to classify. A part-time, minimum wage job is being counted in these studies the same as a full-time engineering or management job. This is a pretty comprehensive look: http://www.jec.senate.gov/public/_cac...

Also see: http://www.thenewamerican.com/economy... for a note on public sector growth.

Here's a direct comparison of public vs private sector: http://www.economicmodeling.com/2012/...

correct, government or military are one and the same.

states are government and cannot therefore create jobs. the state may very well lure one company or another to move from one state to another but that will cost the state money so maybe they increase taxes to pay for a move.
bad business.

There are no "Red or Blue states". This is a media fiction. A more accurate appraisal comes from looking a "Red or Blue" counties, of which each state is a mixture.

When government jobs almost rival those of the private sector, you know the country is in big trouble. When will people ever understand that the government by its very nature cannot create wealth.