US Democratic White House candidate John Kerry has attacked President George W. Bush's record on jobs as just one more broken promise and urged supporters to keep their "primal instinct" alive until the November 2 election.
In a speech to a boisterous rally on the New Orleans waterfront today, Kerry ridiculed Vice President Dick Cheney's assertion earlier this week that if the Massachusetts senator had been president, America would not have had job growth.
"You're darn right, Mr Vice President," Kerry said. "We would have had real job growth."
At the mere mention of Cheney's name, hundreds of people broke into spontaneous and prolonged boos and hisses.
"Just promise me you'll keep that primal instinct alive all the way through November," Kerry said to thunderous applause.
The Labour Department reported that US employers added a paltry 21,000 workers to their payrolls last month, far fewer than expected and a drop in the bucket compared to the Bush administration's prediction of an economy generating 300,000 jobs a month.
"Another broken promise," said Kerry, on a four-day trip to Louisiana, Florida, Mississippi and Texas, states that hold nominating contests on Tuesday. With no major competition left, Kerry has the nomination wrapped up, although he still needs the 2,162 delegates to formally claim it.
Pointing out that Bush's first television campaign ads used pictures of the scene at the New York's World Trade Centre in the September 11 attack, Kerry said the president could not talk about his record in office "so he's going to try to scare America and he's going to try to change the subject."
After lunching on local delicacies - crawfish etouffe and seafood gumbo at "Deanies" diner - the French -speaking Kerry opened his remarks by declaring: "Laissez les bons temps rouler (let the good times roll)" and asking supporters to make it "a slam dunk" against Bush in November.
The Labour Department's numbers appeared to rule out any hope that the economy really would produce 2.6 million jobs this year as projected by a White House economic report last month that most officials had distanced themselves from.
Kerry has repeatedly criticised Bush for presiding over the weakest period of jobs creation for any president since Herbert Hoover during the Great Depression. Since he took office, 2.2 million jobs have vanished.
An average of just 42,000 jobs have been created each month in the last three months, down from the 79,000 average of the prior three months. Economists say gains near 150,000 are needed each month just to keep pace with labour force growth.
Bush campaign spokesman Terry Holt said the report "demonstrated the importance of having a president in the White House who is committed to vigorous job creation agenda."
"John Kerry's 20-year record of supporting higher taxes for businesses and families would derail America's economic recovery and send American jobs overseas," he said. "The last thing we need in a president is higher taxes in the first 100 days of his administration."
Kerry has promised to roll back Bush's tax cuts for Americans earning more than $200,000 a year but supports targeted middle class tax cuts for college, child care and health care.
He said he would cut the federal budget deficit in half in four years. In addition, he has proposed $50 billion for states to create jobs, manufacturing tax credits, close tax loopholes and crackdown on trade violations.