White House spokesman Josh Earnest said Tuesday that “technology” is to blame for the uncertainty in the U.S. economy that has led to slower job growth and the lowest labor force participation rate in decades.
“We’ve seen an economy that is going through some wrenching changes as a result of technology,” Earnest said in a Tuesday morning discussion on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” about President Obama’s State of the Union address. “That technology has spread prosperity in ways that were unimaginable even a decade ago, but at the same time, it has posed some significant challenges.”
“It’s not just jobs on the factory floor that are being replaced by technology, but all kinds of jobs in a variety of sectors,” he added.
Earnest said the Obama administration is focused on what the government can do to “help our workforce capitalize on those kinds of changes.”
Earnest’s assessment stands in contrast to that of many Republicans, who say the decision of millions of people to drop out of the workforce is due in part to the Obama administration’s support for allowing millions of illegal immigrants to stay in the country and work. Many GOP lawmakers have also said federal regulations and laws such as Obamacare are making it harder for thousands of companies to expand their payrolls.
Earnest did say that technology can be an ally to the government when it comes to fighting the Islamic State’s effort to radicalize Americans. He said U.S. officials met with tech firms in California last week to discuss ways to fight the terrorist group on social media.
Earnest also said when it comes to guns, the White House believes President Obama went as far as he could go with his executive actions last week.
“The president has now gone as far as he can based on their current reading of the law, to do as much as possible to keep guns out of the wrong hands,” he said.
