Not everyone agrees with Quinn's job numbers
Updated: March 18, 2013
SPRINGFIELD -- The number of people out of work is up. That's why Governor Quinn says job creation is a top priority, but critics say he may not be adding as many jobs as he claims. WCIA-3's Ashley Michels has more.
They say Quinn is being too optimistic. It has to do with how you calculate how many jobs you expect a certain project to create. Some say there's a problem with the governor's math.
"Our Illinois is a place where everyone has an opportunity to work."
Jobs were a big theme in Quinn's State of the State address. He says the key to getting Illinois back on its feet is putting its people back to work.
He says it's something Illinois is doing well. But some economists take issue with just how many jobs he's taking credit for, like roadwork projects.
"We've been investing $43 billion to build and strengthen our infrastructure. This is supporting more than half a million jobs."
Critics argue he's painting a rosier picture than reality, that 500,000 jobs sounds too good to be true. But, who's right? Political science professor Chris Mooney says it all depends on how you look at it.
"Economists have different points of view on how we should rate certain things, so you're going to get a range of numbers."
Quinn is sticking to the top of that range.
"Nobody who's making a sales pitch is going to do anything but make it sound as good as possible."
Mooney says a positive spin is something all politicians are guilty of.
"Forecasts for anything in the future is going to be open for interpretation."
Experts say, in the grand scheme of things, overstating a few thousand jobs isn't that big of a deal, but when it all starts to sound too good to be true, that's when a politician can lose his credibility.
They say Quinn is being too optimistic. It has to do with how you calculate how many jobs you expect a certain project to create. Some say there's a problem with the governor's math.
"Our Illinois is a place where everyone has an opportunity to work."
Jobs were a big theme in Quinn's State of the State address. He says the key to getting Illinois back on its feet is putting its people back to work.
He says it's something Illinois is doing well. But some economists take issue with just how many jobs he's taking credit for, like roadwork projects.
"We've been investing $43 billion to build and strengthen our infrastructure. This is supporting more than half a million jobs."
Critics argue he's painting a rosier picture than reality, that 500,000 jobs sounds too good to be true. But, who's right? Political science professor Chris Mooney says it all depends on how you look at it.
"Economists have different points of view on how we should rate certain things, so you're going to get a range of numbers."
Quinn is sticking to the top of that range.
"Nobody who's making a sales pitch is going to do anything but make it sound as good as possible."
Mooney says a positive spin is something all politicians are guilty of.
"Forecasts for anything in the future is going to be open for interpretation."
Experts say, in the grand scheme of things, overstating a few thousand jobs isn't that big of a deal, but when it all starts to sound too good to be true, that's when a politician can lose his credibility.
