The doctor is in: U.S. Rep. Bill Cassidy will hold “office” hours with constituents from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday at his district office, 5555 Hilton Ave. Cassidy and his staff members will be available to meet with constituents and hear concerns. Those who can’t make it to the office can contact Cassidy at cassidy.house.gov. Cassidy plans to hold office hours in parishes across the Sixth District and hold telephone meetings.
‘A sobering toll:’ President Barack Obama says there have been “somewhat encouraging” improvements in the country’s stricken labor markets, but the rate of joblessness is “still a sobering toll.” The president spoke shortly after the government reported that the jobless rate rose to 8.9% in April, although the pace of layoffs slowed to 539,000 from well over 600,000 the previous month. He also announced a new plan to permit jobless people to return to college without losing their unemployment benefits. Obama says “if we want to come out of this recession better than before, we have to make sure we have a work force that’s trained better than before.” As for the overall economy, he says: “Although we have a long way to go before we can put this recession behind us, the gears of our economic engine do seem to be slowly turning once again.”
