DNC Chair Tom Perez released the following statement on the May Jobs Report:

“We are in the largest unemployment crisis since the Great Depression. 21 million Americans are unemployed, and one-fifth of the American workforce has lost work or given up on trying to find a job. And Trump says he is joyous? Families are struggling, hospitals are overwhelmed, businesses have shut down for good, and Americans are dying every day—all of this was preventable.

“If Trump had taken bold action instead of delaying, denying, and ignoring the advice of public health experts, he could have saved lives and jobs. Now the American people are suffering the consequences of his incompetence. Hispanic and African American unemployment are still near record highs. And all of this in the backdrop of a terrible public health crisis that is disproportionately impacting Black Americans and national civil unrest over police violence against Black communities. Just as Black Americans can’t breathe under the weight of police brutality, they also can’t breathe under the weight of Trump’s massive failure of leadership during this pandemic.

“Democrats are the only party in Washington advocating for more relief for everyday Americans. That’s why we need to send Joe Biden to the White House. We need a president with empathy and experience to heal our nation and move us forward, not a demagogue who tear gasses his own citizens for a photo-op. We need a president of compassion and courage, not a Twitter-obsessed narcissist who is more worried about his poll numbers than American lives. We need Joe Biden.”