Why South Carolina’s unemployment may not matter

Despite 9.9% jobless rate, pockets of strength in Palmetto State

South Carolina is tied for the eighth-highest jobless rate in the country, but many of the Republican voters taking part in the Palmetto State primary will head to the polls from a position of economic strength.
Take the Greenville-Mauldin-Easley metropolitan area, for example. The area’s jobless rate, not seasonally adjusted, was 7.7% in November, compared with a state rate of 9.2%, and a U.S. rate of 8.2%.

“In Greenville there is more of an air of optimism and that things are on the right track locally. People are excited about our local economy and our downtown,” said Knox White, Greenville’s mayor.

“We kind of resent that the national economy is not on track. There are cranes all over downtown. We feel that we are doing our part, and every time we turn around we are fighting headwinds from the national economy – [it] sits there like a black cloud.” Read more.....