Democrats have broken a prolonged Republican filibuster in the Senate over extending jobless benefits for long-term unemployed workers, with President Obama signing the benefits into law Thursday. While Republicans opposed the costly measure, citing the spiralling deficit, Democrats said the extension was the right thing to do both morally and fiscally. (Watch an AP report about the new bill.) Here's a look at the stats behind the stand-off:
15 million
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
6
Months of unemployment that constitute "long-term" unemployment
2 million
Number of jobless Americans whose benefits will be restored by the new extension
7
Weeks since their benefits expired
7
Number of times benefits have been extended since the recession began
$34 billion
Cost of the benefit extension
$1.4 trillion
Current federal deficit
59-39
Senate vote to approve the bill
272-152
House vote to approve the bill
9.5
Official percentage of U.S. unemployment
5:1
Ratio of unemployed worker per job available
99
Maximum number of weeks of benefits allowed by the bill
26
Number of weeks of benefits that were guaranteed, pre-recession
35
Current average length of unemployment, in weeks
Sources: Reuters, Washington Post (2), New York Times, The Economist, LA Times
-
Pregnancy in AmericaFeature Why is it getting riskier to give birth in the U.S.?
-
The potential warning sign of an auto lender’s bankruptcyIn the Spotlight Tricolor collapse an ‘extreme example’ of economy’s challenges
-
RFK Jr.’s anti-vaccine crusade comes under fireFeature Robert F. Kennedy Jr. faced a heated hearing as senators accused him of lying and spreading chaos
